Part I: Creating a new nation -- 1. The rise and fall of the House of Saud -- 2. The wars of national unification -- 3. The Ikhwan Revolt: reaping what you sow -- Part II: Managing succession -- 4. Kings Saud and Faisal: a house divided -- 5. Kings Khalid, Fahd, and Abdullah: a team of rivals -- 6. King Salman and Mohammed bin Salman: a new royal order -- Part III: Balancing stakeholders -- 7. The tribes -- 8. The clerics -- 9. The merchants -- 10. The technocrats -- 11. The Royal Family -- Part IV: Delivering competent government -- 12. Providing internal security -- 13. Promoting rapid economic development -- 14. Foreign policy: keeping powerful friends -- 15. Foreign policy: deploying oil and Islam -- 16. Leading gradual social change -- Part V: Meeting new challenges -- 17. Economic challenges: kicking the oil habit -- 18 Security challenges: containing Iran and managing Yemen -- 19. Political challenges: sectarianism, corruption, and autocracy -- 20 Evolving Arabia.
Summary:
Something extraordinary is happening in Saudi Arabia. A traditional, tribal society once known for its lack of tolerance is rapidly implementing significant economic and social reforms. An army of foreign consultants is rewriting the social contract, King Salman has cracked down hard on corruption, and his dynamic though inexperienced son, the Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman, is promoting a more tolerant Islam. But is all this a new vision for Saudi Arabia or merely a mirage likely to dissolve into Iranian-style revolution? David Rundell - one of America's foremost experts on Saudi Arabia - explains how the country has been stable for so long, why it is less so today, and what is most likely to happen in the future. The book is based on the author's close contacts and intimate knowledge of the country where he spent 15 years living and working as a diplomat. Vision or Mirage demystifies one of the most powerful, but least understood, states in the Middle East and is essential reading for anyone interested in the power dynamics and politics of the Arab World.
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.