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Introduction

Although founded in 1932, the Saudi Arabian Kingdom and the USA have had a long-

term running bilateral relationship. Commencing in 1933, just one year after it was founded, a

formal documented evidence of the relationship began in 1945, after the Roosevelt-King

Abdul Aziz treaty. The meeting of the two leaders from two culturally diverse nations marked

the beginning of a mutual understanding of the countries although this relationship has

sparked debates and undergone some problems, especially as it relates to the 9/11 attack.

Various authors have taken a keen consideration of the emerging debates and myths in

explanation of this relationship over time. This paper will therefore consider the various

book materials that have considered the emerging debates and myths and the related

problems arising, in addition to presenting the beneficial overview between the two

countries.

Book Reviews

Debates and myths on the US-Saudi relationship

Numerous books and resources have taken a keen consideration of the debate on the

relationship between the USA and Saudi Arabian Kingdom. Different authors have based

these on different perspectives. Firstly, in Bronson’s Thicker Than Oil: America's Uneasy

Partnership with Saudi Arabia 1st Edition, published by the Oxford University Press in June

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25, 2008, the author looks at different perspectives by pointing out that the relationship is far

from the common myth of oil versus security relationship. Instead, the author argues that

relationship was highly motivated by the urge to fight “godless communism in the Middle

East.”

Another key book resource is by Robert Vitalis titled America's Kingdom:

Mythmaking on the Saudi Oil Frontier, published by the Stanford University Press in 2006.

In this book, Vitalis debunks the myth of “The Deal,” whereby the US government was to

provide security to Saudi Arabia in exchange for oil. Instead, he provides a historical

approach to trying periods of insecurities in the two countries, their continual support for each

other and the status of the relationship. Also, we will consider the book by James Risen, State

of War: The Secret History of the CIA and the Bush Administration, published in New York

by Simon & Schuster in 2006. The book takes a look at what is not considered as obvious in

the bilateral relationship betwen the two countries. He argues that although many argue that it

is “The Deal,” that is known to constitute the relationship of the two countries, there are

unknown instances or grounds constituting this relationship. These include secretive signings

with King Abdul Aziz, and the numerous american presidents, who have been in power

throughout the 70-year duration.

The effects of the 9/11 on the relationship

Thirdly, another great resource is a book called, The Unlikely Partnership: The State

of the US -Saudi Relationship, by Jennifer S Delaney, a doctoral paper published by the

department of Military sciences. The resource considers the effects of the 9/11 on the then

70-year old bilateral relationship between the two countries. It further considers the aftermath

of the 9/11 on this long-term relationship, and the status of the relationship. Fourthly,

Humphrey Houghton, in his book, The U.S.–Saudi Arabian Relationship, published by the

Harcourt Publishing Company in 2009, argues that the relationship has been under fire

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immediately after the break of the 9/11 attacks. From an organizational perspective, to an

individual perspective and a rational aspect perspective, the author argues that the conditions

favoring the relationship deteriorated immediately after the 9/11 attack (Delaney, pg70).

The beneficial relationship between the two countries

From the one hand, the Saudi Kingdom benefitted from military training and

sponsorship, just after the end of the Second World War This sponsorship and training, worth

more than $328.4 million, lasted for almost three decades and ended in 1975. Throughout this

duration, the Arabian military force gained dexterous military skills, as well as high

technology and exceptional fighting weapons. The sponsorship was largely aimed at

supplementing the country’s battleground knowledge and skills, in addition to providing it

with state of the art fighting equipment.

Secondly, the Arabian Kingdom benefited from a US led funding for exploration and

utilization of the rich Arabian natural energy resources. Given that the Saudi Arabian

Kingdom did not have sufficient financial aid for this achievement, the help from the USA led

to extensive exploration of these resources. The result is that the Arabian Kingdom was able

to achieve oil resources and sell to the rest of the world, becoming one of the strongest

economies in the Middle East and the world at large. These are not the only benefits that the

Kingdom has enjoyed. The continuous support from the US in relation to territorial integrity

and independence saw the U.S. chip in the gulf war, between Iraq and Kuwait, in support of

the latter as called for by the Kingdom of the Saudi Arabian government. Additionally, the

U.S. government has continually supported Saudi people in relation to quality education

acquisition, by continually allowing more students from the Kingdom to enter U.S.

institutions of learning without much restriction (Risen, pg 89).

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The USA has also largely benefitted from this bilateral relationship. Given the Saudi’s

political position in the Middle East, coupled with its support for USA, this bilateral

relationship has enabled the former to enter the Middle East and flush out world terrorist

networks such as Al-Qaida. This support has included provision of military deployment and

training ground for the US forces in the Middle East, and assistive information concerning

terrorism networks in the region. Lately, owing to the global views of Muslim radicalization

towards terrorism, the Saudi government put in place efforts to monitor mosques and Imams,

through the ministry of Islamic affairs. This effort largely helped to improve the relationship

between the USA and many Islamic countries around the world.

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Works Cited

Bronson, Rachel, Thicker Than Oil: America's Uneasy Partnership with Saudi Arabia 1st

Edition. Oxford University Press; 1

Ed, (June 25, 2008).

Delaney, Jennifer S. The Unlikely Partnership: The State of the US -Saudi Relationship, Miffl

Hougton.

Humphrey, Houghton, The U.S.–Saudi Arabian Relationship, Harcourt Publishing Company,

2009

Risen, James, State of War: The Secret History of the CIA and the Bush Administration. By.

New York. Simon & Schuster, 2006.

Vitalis, Robert, America's Kingdom: Mythmaking on the Saudi Oil Frontier, Stanford

University Press, 2006.

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