Robert W. Jordan writes:

The September 14 attack on Saudi oil facilities—an attack the United States, Britain, Germany and France all say Iran carried out—demonstrates how close the Middle East is to war. But the focus on Iranian aggression must not obscure Saudi Arabia’s own role in the worsening situation, including its disastrous involvement in the civil war in Yemen. Rushing to provide U.S. military support to Saudi Arabia now will send the absolute wrong signal to Riyadh, whose conduct over the past few years has damaged America’s global standing and threatened our security.

Congress is considering whether to end U.S. backing for the Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen. It should suspend U.S. arms sales and other support for the coalition not only to help end the horrific conflict, but to make clear that Saudi Arabia must take steps to avoid a broader regional conflagration.

I know from personal experience the complexities of U.S.-Saudi ties, having served as American ambassador in Riyadh from 2001-2003—until now, perhaps the most difficult period in our nearly nine-decade bilateral relationship. During my tenure, I faced a Saudi government in denial that 15 of the 9/11 hijackers were Saudi citizens and blind to the threat religious extremism posed to both of our countries. Then, as now, Saudi leaders refused to acknowledge dangers everyone else saw clearly. Now, unlike then, the danger emanating from Saudi Arabia comes not from radicalized citizens, but from the Saudi leadership itself.

Among the many flagrant acts undertaken by Saudi Arabia over the past few years, two have fixed in the minds of U.S. lawmakers and the American public: its catastrophic involvement in the war in Yemen and the gruesome murder of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi. Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Arabia’s reckless crown prince who’s better known as MBS, stands behind both of them. [Continue reading…]