Saudi Arabia

The Arab Peace Initiative (API) is receiving a great deal of attention these days, primarily from Israel, but also from Egypt, the Gulf states, and others. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu recently said the plan had “positive elements,” after almost 14 years of ignoring or dismissing the proposal. Even more unusually, new Israeli Defense Minister...

Dr. Hala Aldosari, honored by Freedom House on May 24 as co-winner of its 2016 Freedom Award, is a Saudi women’s rights advocate whose work on behalf of women is nearly without precedent in the kingdom. A researcher on women’s health issues including domestic violence, Aldosari talks here about prospects for significant social reform.

The United States' relationship with Saudi Arabia has been a cornerstone of U.S. policy in the Middle East for decades.

Intellect Jeddah is a grassroots organization initiated by young Saudi women Renad Amjad, Amna Fatani, Refaa Sindi, Jawaher Abbar, and Orjwan Alomari, with an eye toward creating a thriving intellectual environment in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Their current team consists of Renad, Amna, Mai Abdulwahab, and Walaa Alqarni. Targeting youth age 19-29, most of Intellect’s participants are...

This post is part of an AGSIW series on Saudi Vision 2030, a sweeping set of programs and reforms adopted by the Saudi government to be implemented by 2030. It’s going to be a long, hot summer, full of anticipation. As the frenzy of ministry reshuffles announced on May 7 in Saudi Arabia surprised both domestic and international...

This post is part of an AGSIW series on Saudi Vision 2030, a sweeping set of programs and reforms adopted by the Saudi government to be implemented by 2030. On April 25, Saudi Arabia’s young deputy crown prince, defense minister, and head of the Council of Economic and Developmental Affairs, Mohammed bin Salman (MbS), boldly outlined...

This post is part of an AGSIW series on Saudi Vision 2030, a sweeping set of programs and reforms adopted by the Saudi government to be implemented by 2030. Were there surprises in the Vision 2030 announcement? No, in fact, there was very little new information in the announcement of the Vision 2030 plan on April 25, which...

On April 25, the Saudi government presented Vision 2030, a sweeping plan for moving the kingdom beyond oil dependence. Alongside the privatization of a portion of the Saudi national oil company Aramco and the expansion of the resources and role of the Saudi Public Investment Fund, the plan proposes a broad socioeconomic transformation that would...