Visits to Saudi Arabia by senior US officials are always problematic. The two countries have one

kind of

love-hate relationship.

Politicians and the public criticize the Saudi kingdom’s human rights record and oppression of women; his reluctance to increase oil production; his socializing with Russia, China

,

and even now

of

first while enemy Iran.

But the US and Saudi Arabia also need each other for trade and for broader security arrangements in the Middle East, including conflict.

like it

Yemen and Sudan, which they are working on together

or

achieve ceasefires or provide humanitarian aid to devastated populations.

And the Biden administration is fervently persuading Riyadh to establish diplomatic ties with Israel, following similar Trump-era breakthrough gestures by a small number of others

G

Gulf or Muslim countries.

Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken

on Friday

completed a four-day visit to the Saudi cities of Jeddah and Riyadh

last week

including an overnight meeting with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

Ben

Salman, the de facto ruler of the nation, is

or

a ruthless dictator,

or

a bold reformer

or both

depending on who

m

you ask.

He can be both.

The 37-year-old prince is

largely

.

largely

responsible for the brutal

murder murder

and mutilation

a

Saudi journalist from the US

Jamal Khashoggi

at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in 2018. President Biden called once

am Salmanhim

a pariah and swore to shun him, a promise

to pray

eventually reversed in a famous fist bump

between the two

last year

Executions of alleged enemies of the kingdom have been flooded

am

Salman’s rule, human rights activists say, and reports of arbitrary detention and torture of activists, many of them women, persist, even as he lifted some anachronistic restrictions on women, such as allowing them to drive.

Despite the litany of Saudi transgressions, the

to pray

The government is entering talks with the kingdom as a way of demonstrating that it still has influence in the Middle East

at a time when many in the region note that Washington has been absent from the ensuing events and decisions and as China and Russia flex their diplomatic and military muscles where the US was once the unrivaled superpower.

I would say my presence here for the past three days is an element to show that we are definitely not leaving. We will stay here, Blinken told the Saudi Arabia-based Asharq News network

on

Thursday when asked about the US commitment to the region.

Day

–

inside, day

–

out, worked with partners across the region, both to address many of the challenges that are real and urgent and acute, but also and this is so important on a positive agenda for the future, Blinken added. We are a partner and were here.

Blinken said at a separate press conference in Riyadh that he discussed human rights during his meetings with

am

Salman and other Saudi officials and made it clear that progress on human rights strengthens our relationship.

He said he had raised specific cases, including those of several US citizens imprisoned in the kingdom, but would not say whether he had been given guarantees of their freedom or go into other details.

Critics accuse the Biden administration of covering up Saudi abuses by not doing more

public and

sue them vigorously

public

which in turn encourages

am

Salman.

The government needs to abandon its behind-closed-door approach to addressing human rights in Saudi Arabia, said Tess McEnery, who served on Biden’s National Security Council until last year and now heads the nongovernmental project.

for

Democracy in the Middle East. There must be clear public costs [

bin

Salmans] repression. For almost a year [since the Biden visit]we have seen what a policy of appeasement looks like.

The Biden administration sanctioned some members of the Saudi security apparatus for the 2018 murder of Washington Post contributing columnist

Jamal

Khashoggi,

but not

am

Salman, which U.S. intelligence officials believe

probably probably

ordered the murder.

In Congress, lawmakers have revived legislation that could block arms sales to Saudi Arabia based on its human rights record, and two measures have been proposed to punish governments for transnational repression:

,

the illegal pursuit through a country

,

beyond its borders

,

from dissidents or critics, as happened with Khashoggi. It is

So

a tactic

also used

often

used

by Russian President Vladimir Putin, whose government has been accused of hunting

down

and poisoning opponents in England and elsewhere.

flashing v

last week in Saudi Arabia,

Flash

also came under criticism for praise

what he mentioned

Saudi advances in treatment of women,

Commendation to the first female Saudi astronaut to go into space and meeting with eight hand-picked Saudi women designated as leaders by the State Department.

Blinken’s comments came

even so numerous

Saudi

women face decades in prison for what supporters say are petty crimes,

looks like

not wearing an abaya on social media or tweeting criticism of the kingdom.

Substantial progress for women is just a story the Saudi government is selling to the West, Lina Al

–

That’s what Hathloul, a Saudi activist who has long campaigned for women’s rights and freedom of expression, said in an interview from Brussels, where she has taken refuge with her government. It’s just window dressing. And the government sees the green light to double the repression.

Glad you got her in here. Great quote.

Already

–

Hathloul spent years campaigning for the release of her sister Loujain, who was arrested in 2018 for driving. Loujain is now out of prison, but is not allowed to travel or speak in public.

Although women do

now

got the right to drive

and some access to elections, they still can’t vote and Saudi Arabia is the

so called

custody

rules remain in place, restricting many activities

looks like

Traveling or marrying for women without the consent of a male relative.

Saudi officials insist they have made significant progress on human rights issues, but will only move forward on their own terms.

We are always open to dialogue with our friends, but we do not respond to pressure, Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan said at a news conference.

in

the Riyadh press conference with Blinken. When we do something, we do it in our own interest. And I don’t think anyone believes that pressure is helpful or beneficial, and so we’re not even going to think about that.

One of the reasons the Biden administration wants to keep its relationship with Saudi Arabia on a cordial keel is the role the oil-rich kingdom can play in integrating Israel into a region that has long refused to accept Israel’s existence. acknowledge.

the

government of the former president

Trump

administration

brokered the Abraham Accords, which saw the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain establish diplomatic and economic ties with Israel for the first time.

Saudi Arabia, an A

is the powerhouse of the

G

golf,

Saudi Arabia

would be a appreciated addition

to the declaration

, but it resists so far. Saudi officials point to the continued failure to resolve the Palestinian quest for an independent state. Riyadh has also issued a series of high demands, including US aid in nuclear energy development, but US officials

that’s what you believe

an opening move.

Meanwhile, the current Israeli government is the far right within

are

history, considering the possibilities for progress on the Palestinian cause to be non-existent.

Blink, me me

n Riyadh last week,

Flash

said Saudi-Israeli normalization remained a priority.

But the Saudi foreign minister refuted that, while desirable, the goal

would stay

remote without finding a way to peace for the Palestinian people

,

a path to a two-state solution, about finding a way to bring dignity and justice to the Palestinians.

It would also be a bad sight for the Saudis to move closer to Israel at a time when deadly clashes and attacks are on the rise in Israel, the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip, and after several Israeli police raids in the Al

Aqsa Mosque, said Khaled Elgindy, a senior fellow at the Washington-based Middle East Institute. Already

Aqsa is the third holiest site in Islam, located in a

N

area also sacred to Jews.

“The Saudis are in no rush to normalize,” he said, even though “the Biden administration has put it higher on the list than [an independent state] for the Palestinians, that’s just a talking point now.”

Shira Efron, research director at the US-based Israel Policy Forum, said while Israel is eager to reap the benefits of normalization, the pieces of the puzzle remain extremely complicated, with the US and Israel reluctant to join the strictest demands of the Saudis. .

“And if the US and Saudi Arabia could agree on what the US will give, would Congress approve?” she said

, add. Finally she added that

room for negotiation

will is

probably

Unpleasant

shrink like the US presidential election

season

is in full swing.