Saudi Regime Research Articles

Dominance of Saudi Arabia in the Middle East after the Arab Spring

This article seeks to utilize double track diplomacy to examine Saudi Arabia's foreign policy following the Arab uprisings, with a focus on Saudi dominance in the Middle East. The research aims to illustrate a transition in Saudi Arabia's foreign policy from a strategy of balancing to one of leadership and coalition-building, as framed by the balance of threat theory. The central inquiry is: what effect did the altered security environment of the Middle East post-2011 Arab uprisings have on Saudi foreign policy? Addressing this question, and considering the assertion that the nature of threats in the Middle East has shifted post-uprisings in a way that directly threatens the stability of the Saudi regime, necessitating a different response, our hypothesis posits that Saudi foreign policy moved from traditional balancing (aligning with international powers against threats) to a more independent and self-reliant stance. However, Saudi Arabia's assertive stance towards Yemen, Bahrain, and Syria in reaction to regional events has led to heightened fear and instability in the region. These actions have the potential to shift the balance of power, posing significant challenges to the legitimacy of these nations within their respective spheres of influence.

A Kingdom of Possibility

A Kingdom of Possibility

“The Pandemic Was a Global Exam, and Our Country Came in First”: Autocratic Performance Legitimacy in Saudi Arabia

Existing scholarship establishes that authoritarian regimes make claims about their legitimacy yet does not tell us what makes these claims effective. This article argues that authoritarian legitimation is more effective when coproduced by the government, media, and progovernment supporters, rather than just being centrally disseminated talking points. This article uses the effective handling of the COVID-19 pandemic by the Saudi government to demonstrate how this narration translated trust in state capacity into performance legitimacy of the Saudi regime and system of governance. Saudi media figures and progovernment supporters expanded basic government talking points for audiences and discussed successful policies in relation to countries with higher international status (chiefly in the West) and higher state capacity (such as China). This article evaluates statements by the government, original media sources, and more than 90 interviews with Saudi nationalists, intellectuals, and entrepreneurs, while speaking to the relational character of performance legitimation beyond Saudi Arabia.

Examining the Relationship between Economic Reform and Political Freedom: Vision 2030 and Democratic Transition in Saudi Arabia

Saudi Vision 2030 aims to engender structural economic change in Saudi Arabia and promises greater transparency, accountability, citizen engagement, and more open economic and social spaces. If successful in the long term, it could reconfigure the relationship between state and citizenry and reshape the entire political system, or lead to democratic transition. This paper examines the impact of Vision 2030 on democratisation in the kingdom. Drawing on the concepts of democratic transition, the rentier state, and the authoritarian bargain as a theoretical framework, the paper adopts a descriptive analytical approach to understand the relationship between economic reform and democratisation. It concludes that the Saudi regime tactically implements economic reforms for several purposes: to contain internal and external changes, to monopolise power, and to endow the regime with new legitimacy at home and abroad. Three indicators support this conclusion: the reconstitution of elites and the centralisation of power, the continued suppression of the opposition, and the regime’s interest in ensuring the stability and perpetuation of authoritarianism.

Política Externa da Arábia Saudita sob MBS: mudança da unidade de decisão e seus impactos em relação ao Iêmen e à Síria

Abstract If Saudi Arabia’s regional strategy involves the containment of Iran’s proxies, why, under King Salman, did Saudi Arabia attack the Houthis in Yemen, but give up its attempt to overthrow Bashar al-Assad in Syria? I argue here that both decisions reflect Mohammed bin Salman’s willingness to seek ‘heterodox’ solutions in foreign policy, a feature that guided Saudi foreign policy in the face of a changing decision-making unit in the Saudi regime. While MBS’s influence in the case of Yemen is more easily identified, in the case of Syria this is not so straightforward. The crown prince only acquired the ability to manoeuvre Saudi policy towards Syria after consolidating his power within the regime, in 2017, and, from there, he put in place measures that, in practice, facilitated a coexistence arrangement between Saudi Arabia and Russia. In both cases, the objective was to contain the perceived Iranian advances in a scenario of reduced appetite by the United States to provide security for Saudi Arabia. This conclusion is reached through the use of a Foreign Policy Analysis approach, more specifically, the analysis of the decision-making units, to broaden and deepen the observations made from a regime security perspective.

Digital Authoritarianism in the Middle East: Deception, Disinformation and Social Media

Digital Authoritarianism in the Middle East: Deception, Disinformation and Social Media

How Saudi Media Covered the Murder of Jamal Khashoggi: The Case of Arab News

Evidences show that Saudi agents killed prominent journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Saudi Arabia’s Istanbul consulate on October 2, 2018. As the Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman was blamed for the murder, Arab News newspaper took a defensive position to defend the crown prince and the Saudi regime through news reports and columns. This study has analyzed 36 articles of ten columnists of Arab News to learn how Saudi journalists defended their regime and the Saudi officials charged for the murder. This research indicates that they received the concerning statements of the Saudi regime as true and tried to justify them in their columns. On the other hand, columnists blamed Turkey, Qatar, and other critics for clamping down Saudi Arabia. When columnists’ attitudes are examined, it can be seen that they look furious, closed to opposite views, and biased. Their columns also give some idea about the press freedom in Saudi Arabia. This study is expected to reveal how media operates in Saudi Arabia via the content analysis of columns of Arab News regarding Khashoggi’s murder.

Breach of quarantine provisions on individuals in the Saudi regime, and it`s punishment. comparative root study

Breach of quarantine provisions on individuals in the Saudi regime, and it`s punishment. comparative root study

Factors Influencing E-Entrepreneurial Intention among Female Students in Saudi Arabia

Entrepreneurship has attracted enhanced attention in the twenty-first century. Entrepreneurial schemes vary the production and service sectors of a country's economy and lead it to increase its revenues and materialize speedy growth and development. However, the current Saudi regime has allowed enhanced social space to females, and a new social environment has paved the way for them to partake business opportunities actively. Thus, the aim of this study is to explore the direct impact of perceived social support towards e-entrepreneurial intention as well as the direct influence of perceived social support on the theory of planned behavior (TPB) components encompass attitude towards entrepreneurial, subjective norms, and self-efficacy of entrepreneurship. Also, this study examines the direct effect of the theory of planned behavior (TPB) components (attitude towards entrepreneurial, subjective norms, and entrepreneurial self-efficacy). Data were collected through questionnaires which were completed by 534 undergraduate female Saudi students have been selected randomly studying at various Saudi universities. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was used to test the model, and data analysis was carried out using Structural Equation Modelling – Partial Least Square (SEM-PLS). This study, therefore revealed that perceived social support has a positive impact on the e-entrepreneurship intention as well as the relationship between perceived social support and the components of the TPB (attitude towards entrepreneurial intention, subjective norms, and entrepreneurial self-efficacy) were statistically significant. Subsequently, the direct effect of the TPB components (attitude towards entrepreneurial and entrepreneurial self-efficacy) was significant, while the direct effect related to subjective norms and the e-entrepreneurial intention was insignificant. Therefore, this study offers theoretical and practical contributions to entrepreneurial studies.

Understanding “Sectarianism”: Sunni-Shiʿa Relations in the Modern Arab World

Understanding “Sectarianism”: Sunni-Shiʿa Relations in the Modern Arab World

The Saudi- Iranian Conflict and its Repercussions on the Middle East

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia was one of the first countries to recognize the new regime in Iran, and expressed its desire to cooperate with it, but soon the regime turned into a hostile regime, and that as an Islamic religious system, it competes with the Saudi regime in religion, opposes it in doctrine, and opposes it in goals. So the merging of what is a political discrepancy and a conflict with what is a sectarian difference or dispute between them and their allies in this struggle. In addition to the kingdom’s feeling of provocation over the issue of "exporting the Iranian revolution" and its fear of targeting its ruling regime and those of the Gulf states in general.

The Changing Contours of Saudi Arabia: Mohammed bin Salman and the Paradox of Saudi Reforms

This review article aims to provide broader nuances about Saudi Arabia amid the rapid developments taking place in the Middle East in general and Saudi Arabia in particular, following the rise of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS). This article begins with Salman’s Legacy, edited by Madawi al-Rasheed, and subsequently, takes up Madawi al-Rasheed’s The Son King and Ben Hubbard’s biography of MBS. It provides a brief summary of the books under review and analyzes their different themes while critically examining their prevailing shortcomings. The rise of MBS has brought about visible changes, not only in the political body of Saudi Arabia but in the wider Arab world as well. Salman’s Legacy: The Dilemmas of a New Era in Saudi Arabia, edited by Madawi al-Rasheed, seeks to highlight these challenges and provide a broad overview of Saudi Arabia, ranging from domestic affairs to foreign affairs and exploring the factors that drive the Saudi regime.

La política exterior de Arabia Saudí: equilibrio entre factores domésticos y externos

TThis article explores the evolution of Saudi Arabia’s foreign policy, with a particular emphasis on the context following the 2011 anti-authoritarian uprisings. Drawing on the theoretical framework of subaltern realism, the study focuses on the close link between the country’s domestic situation and external constraints, predominantly in the context of the Gulf and the so-called Middle East, and the way it has commanded the crown’s articulation and implementation of the country’s foreign strategy. The kingdom’s ultimate objective, both yesterday and today, is to guarantee the House of Saud’s stability and legitimacy. The text pays special attention to the different dimensions of the so-called ‘Salman doctrine’ and the key role played by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, currently Defense minister. It also reexamines the main issues on the Saudi regime’s national and regional agenda.

نظام الشرکات الجدید وقانون الاستثمار (دراسة تحلیلیة مقارنة بین القانون المصری والنظام السعودی)

هذه الدراسة تناولت نظام الشرکات الجديد وقانون الاستثمار (دراسة تحليلية مقارنة بين القانون المصري والنظام السعودي)، وذلک لتوضيح مفهوم الشرکة الأجنبية وفروعها، وخصائصها ومميزاتها، ومعيار مرکز الإدارة الرئيسي للفرع، وإجراءات تأسيس فرع الشرکة الأجنبية، ومعيار تحديد جنسيته، الجزاءات التي تترتب على مخالفة الشرکات الأجنبية لأحکام النظام، وجرائم الشرکات الأجنبية. وتکمن أهمية هذا الموضوع في إقدام المشرع السعودي من خلال نظام الشرکات الجديد الصادر عام 2015 بتاريخ 28/1/1437هـ إلى سن أنواع خاصة من الشرکات، فرضتها التطورات التي شهدتها المملکة على الصعيدين الاقتصادي والاستثماري، ولهذا يمتاز نظام الشرکات الجديد بإضافة شرکات جديدة من بينها الشرکات الأجنبية، کذلک قيام المشرع المصري بإصدار قانون الاستثمار وتعديلاته رقم 72 لسنة 2017. This study dealt with the new corporate system and investment law (comparative analysis of Egyptian law and Saudi regime), to clarify the concept of a foreign company and its branches, its characteristics and characteristics, and the standard of the main management center the branch, the procedures for establishing the foreign company branch, the criterion for determining its nationality, and sanctions Which is foreign companies violate the rules of the system, and foreign companies' crimes. The importance of this topic lies in the Saudi legislators work through The new corporate system issued is public 2015 on 28-1-1437 to the age of special types of companies, imposed by development the Kingdom is both economic and investment, so the new corporate system features the addition of companies' new ones, including foreign companies, also the Egyptian legislator issued investment Law and amendments on 72 publics 2017.

The transformation of Saudi-Israeli relations

ABSTRACT This article analyzes the transformation of a new and important relationship between Israel and Saudi Arabia, bringing to light hidden aspects of their relations. It analyses the causes and character of this shift, as well as the opportunities, constrains and challenges for the relationship going forward. The primary cause of the transformation is the greatly increased threat posed by Iran and a shared concern about the reliability of the United States as an ally in this regard. The rise of the Iranian threat has weakened the influence of the Palestinian issue over Saudi policy to Israel. In the 2010s Israel and Saudi Arabia cooperated extensively to contain Iran, despite the absence of peace negotiations. Moreover, in contrast to the past, the Saudi regime is more flexible regarding the terms of any Israeli-Palestinian deal and sanctioned steps towards normalising relations with Israel prior to a comprehensive peace agreement. The future development of the relationship is still constrained by the transnational resonance of the Palestinian issue, but this constraint is weakening.

Paper Currency, Banking, and Islamic Monetary Debates in Late Ottoman and Early Saudi Arabia

Abstract This article examines the Saudi government’s refusal to introduce paper currency until 1956 against the backdrop of two developments: First, the composition of a number of treatises written by Muslim scholars in the late Ottoman and early Saudi Hijaz and Najd permitting use of the medium; second, the unsuccessful effort by several Muslim entrepreneurs to create formal banking facilities in the Hijaz between the 1920s and 1950s. Throughout these decades, as the Saudi regime repeatedly claimed that paper currency violated Islamic orthodoxy because it was a bearer of interest, these scholars argued forcefully for the medium’s legitimacy by mobilizing the legal sources of their particular school of law (madhhab). This contrast reflects how the religious politics of the kingdom departed from both Ottoman precedents and other contemporary Islamic contexts in which paper currency was widely assimilated via the assent of Muslim legal scholars. The regime’s tepid support for, or outright obstruction of, the creation of formal banking facilities that issued paper currency further exacerbated this divergence. In the end, because of such inconsistency it required technocratic institutions like the IMF and ARAMCO to introduce paper currency and a formal banking system into the kingdom from the mid-1950s.

New Petro‐aggression in the Middle East: Saudi Arabia in the Spotlight

AbstractThat hydrocarbon abundance may lead to more violence is an established truism in the literature on the resource curse. Looking at the Middle East, however, the literature relates bellicose state behaviour entirely to oil‐producing revolutionary republics. Instead, dynastic monarchies are claimed to be the more peacefully behaving actors. Current developments turn this conclusion upside down, however. Since 2015 at the latest, the foreign policy of Saudi Arabia, the leading monarchy in the Middle East, has transformed from multi‐dependence to petro‐aggression. By discussing this striking transformation, the paper puts forward a framework looking at the interaction of three crucial dimensions: first, the decreasing power projection towards the Middle East by the United States, the decade‐long hegemon, due to gradual changes in world energy markets and war fatigue at home; second, the lasting fiscal potency of the Saudi regime; and, third, the personalization of the Saudi monarchy under King Salman as a historically contingent result of transferring power to the generation of Ibn Saud's grandsons.

Legal safeguards for juvenile accused at trial stage: الضمانات القانونية للمتهم الحدث في مرحلة المحاكمة

This study aimed to analyze and compare the legal guarantees of the juvenile accused in the trial stage under both the Saudi regime and the Convention on the Rights of the Child. On the analytical and comparative approach, through the analysis of criminal legal texts dealing with the organization of legal safeguards for the juvenile accused at the trial stage until we find out their adequacy and inadequacy and their effectiveness in achieving a fair trial for juveniles, and compare them with the Convention on the Rights of the Child to address deficiencies and deficiencies, if any, and rectify them. This study culminates in a number of results, the most important of which are: The conviction of the juvenile should not be considered a priority, because it is unfair to load the juvenile mistakes in his juvenile period, in addition to this may affect the future of the event, and make him an adult deviant. The study also reached a number of recommendations, the most important of which are the following: Using the technical means in the social observation house and the girls' welfare institution when conducting the trial with juveniles, because of its importance in the event feeling of peace and comfort Consequences of being in a room isolated from the atmosphere of the trial.

Challenges and Strategies in Tackling the Issues of Structural Unemployment in Saudi Arabia: a Vision 2030

The aim of this paper is to analyze and review the current unemployment crisis in Saudi Arabia and alternative schemes that might be designed to reduce structural unemployment in Saudi Arabia. Localization of the workforce is one of the major initiatives taken by the Saudi government to reduce the unemployment of their local work force. The current study comprehensively reviewed the effectiveness of the measure called by the Saudi regime. The data and information are collected using secondary data which are government reports, website, as well as past research. Literature indicated that the incorporation of the workforce initiatives has significantly reduced the unemployment of the Saudi work force. Yet the trouble still exists, and Saudi government and policy makers still required developing more efficient strategies to cope with the situation. The Kingdom has never hit 100 percent employment due to various factors including the nature of the labour market. It was also suggested that the continuous issue for this structural unemployment is because there are still large number of expatriates in many organizations in the Saudi even after the government has implemented the Saudization program.

Diplomatic Conflict and Media Framing: Reporting of Al Jazeera and Al Arabia Channels Related to Saudi-Qatar Conflict

Conflict in human history is older than diplomacy. In the 21st century, the nature of conflicts has changed into non-conventional warfare. The conflict between Saudi Arabia and Qatar started on June 5th, 2017 when Saudi Arabia and four other Arab states cut their diplomatic relations with Qatar. They accused Qatar as a supporter of terrorism among the region and Qatar totally denied the allegations against it. But diplomatic conflict begging between Saudi Arabia and Qatar and they both are using their media for trying to win this war. Electronic Media in the Middle East was founded in 1975's but it has been under the control of state authorities. Al Jazeera was launched on first of November in 1996 following the closing of BBC Arabic language channel in the region. The reason behind its shutting down was an intrusion of Saudi Arabia. After this happening Amir of Qatar at that time provided a loan of 500 million Qatari Riyal for the sustaining Al Jazeera. Al Jazeera flourished throughout its history and also remains under criticism. On another hand, Saudi Arabia is backing Dubai based channel Al Arabia, some Saudi investors and government of the Saudi regime have launched this channel for tackling the Qatari narratives through Al Jazeera. It is considered as a competitor and rival of Al Jazeera because of Saudi Royal family has some reservations about the channel and its ownership Qatari administration. Previous studies indicate that due to their rivalry and some other diplomatic issues, both channels are framing the issues related to both countries. The purpose of this research is to find out how both channels are framing the news and issues for fulfilling the state's interest. Critical discourse analysis of media reports is the most suitable method for finding the proper shreds of evidence regarding the purpose of this research. Saudi Arabia is supposed to a regional hegemon of the Middle East and the hegemonic stability theory can provide clear glasses to understand the whole issue. The results of previous researches point out that both channels are state-sponsored and working for strengthens the respective state’s point of view in diplomatic conflict.