Word: saudi
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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Similarly, great pains have been taken to isolate the American troops from the Saudi public and minimize cultural clashes. Alcohol and pornography are forbidden to the Americans. Their bases are located away from cities and towns, and when they must venture into settlements, they are under orders to wear civilian clothing and to go unarmed when possible. Violations of this rule have evoked complaints from the Saudis, though both sides are eager to downplay such frictions...
Still, the huge American troop presence cannot help jolting Saudi composure. Says an intimate of the royal decision makers: "They know you can't get into bed with an elephant without a shock to the system." That is especially so now that the affair is out in the open. In the past the Saudis insisted on an "over the horizon" policy toward the U.S. -- they wanted protection but preferred that it be invisible. Faced with Saddam's legions, Fahd quickly < changed his mind. Even as U.S. Secretary of Defense Dick Cheney flew to Riyadh immediately after the invasion of Kuwait...
...addition to shoving Riyadh decisively into the Western camp, the gulf crisis has forced the Saudis to rethink relations with their fellow Arabs. According to Western diplomats, Riyadh has decided to financially squeeze the P.L.O., once a big recipient of Saudi largesse, as punishment for its support of Saddam. Yasser Arafat, whom King Fahd dislikes anyway, has asked three times to visit the kingdom but has been turned away. Angered by King Hussein's vacillations on the gulf crisis, King Fahd has refused calls from the Jordanian monarch, who also ranks high on the Saudi dole list. By refusing...
Some observers believe a new troika of power linking Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Syria will emerge in the region. U.S. analysts in Washington are doubtful. As they see it, Riyadh has been burned so badly by its neighbors that it is likely to resist Arab alignments and instead rely more on the West...
Whatever the realignments in foreign policy, Fahd and his family will find them easier to swallow than the changes in the country's internal order that some Saudis are just beginning to push for. As Prince Salman's cool reaction to the businessmen in Riyadh suggests, the royals show no willingness to relinquish their monopoly on power. Over time, however, they may see little choice. "It is our tradition to accept authority," says a Saudi professional in Dhahran, adding significantly, "unless the legitimacy of authority is lost." Now that the once closed kingdom has been shocked into opening its doors...