The foreign minister, who spoke in a press conference in Riyadh, described the Syrian oppositional coalition as a “positive step forward.”
Syria’s new opposition coalition created a new executive body at a meeting in Cairo on Friday, less than a month after the group came into being with Western and Arab support.
France, Britain, Turkey and Gulf Arab states have already recognized the coalition as the legitimate representative of the Syrian people.
Prince Al-Faisal announced that a Saudi delegation would attend the “Friends of Syria” meeting later this month.
The 4th Friends of Syria conference will be held in Marrakech in central Morocco on Dec. 12, in an attempt to increase pressure on the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
The National Coalition for the Opposition Forces, which was formed by Syrian opposition groups early November in the Qatari capital of Doha, as well as more than 100 senior government officials from “Friends of Syria Group” countries supporting the Syrian opposition will attend the meeting.
The Saudi minister also discussed the United Nations winning bid last week for observer status, saying that he hopes the U.N. would “consider the majority’s decision on Palestine and end Israeli policy of delaying matters.”
Key Issue Facing the Saudi Ruling House
Gulf in the Media – Author: Dr. Abdulaziz O. Sager
The removal of the Kingdom’s Interior Minister after only five months in office is a point of concern for many observers of the Saudi political scene. The sudden move surprised many Saudis both at home and abroad who see it as part of a worrying phenomenon among the Kingdom’s top leadership during the past two years that has already claimed the positions of a number of senior members of the ruling house of al-Saud. Whatever the motivations or reasons and avoiding any speculation, the sudden dismissal of a senior Prince from the key post of Interior Minister cannot be justified by the usual official justifications of ill health, private circumstance, or by an expressed personal desire for retirement. None of these frequently used justifications apply to this case as there was no official explanation.
The dismissed Minister served for 37 years as Deputy-Minister of the Interior compiling a respected track record throughout this period. He was well-respected and loved by the people. His appointment to the position of Minister immediately following the death of his brother Prince Nayef was therefore expected and justified.
The decision to remove him can therefore only be explained within the context of a state of confusion and uncertainty sweeping the inner circle of the ruling House of al-Saud since the demise of two most senior Princes, Prince Sultan and Prince Nayef within the short period of less than eight months. As a result, there is a risk that the harmony within the ruling family rank and file is dwindling. The latest dismissal of such a key Prince, and the manner in which this decision was taken has been met with disquiet and concern by a number of senior as well as younger Princes and has created doubts among members of the ruling family about who will be next on the list as he was the fifth brother to be removed from his post within a relatively short period. The ones left in official positions are trying to guess the King’s intentions. The impact of the decision is thus negative and has demoralized and confused part of the family.
It should be clearly stated that no one has any doubt about the ability and qualifications of the new Interior Minister or about the recognizable professionalism he has shown during his tenure as an Assistant Interior Minister for Security Affairs for more than 12 years. Neither are there any reservations about his remarkable record of achievements in his field of responsibility. He played a key role in the development and modernization of the security forces and in the fight against terrorism. The question here is not whether the new Minister is eligible to fulfill his responsibilities. This is beyond doubt. Rather, the issue of debate is whether the King’s move represents an isolated decision, or is part of a comprehensive plan to introduce the second generation of the ruling house to leadership positions. Members of the ruling family along with the great majority of Saudi people will certainly welcome any systematic or structured move to introduce the second generation of the ruling family to the seat of power but there must be confidence that such move is part of a comprehensive and sustainable rather than an ad hoc plan.
All family members understand that in the current Saudi political system, the King has no restrictions on his authority or power. But they are also fully aware that the internal politics of the family are based on unwritten internal rules and on deep-rooted tribal traditions that require the King to maintain the system of checks and balances and uphold the need to establish a consensus among family members. King Abdulaziz, the founding father of the new Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, set up the rules of sharing and distribution of responsibility and duties among his sons. Now, these rules and values appear to have been modified.
The dynamics of the Family must not be based on zero-sum perceptions, as in the past rules of consensus worked effectively and managed any major crisis inside the ruling House of al-Saud. The family was able to overcome the deposition of King Saud in 1964, the assassination of King Faisal in 1975, and the long illness and incapacitation of King Fahd between 1997 and 2005. Even in the case of King Abdullah, it can be said that the traditions and the rules of the House of al-Saud proved effective to address grievances. Prince Abdullah became King despite all obstacles, real or imaginary, that were placed in his way. He was able to come to the throne at the right time and in the legitimate manner. Family unity was preserved as the family’s rules and traditions prevailed.
In October 2006, just a little over a year after King Abdullah succeeded to the throne, the King took an important step to modernize and institutionalize the selection process of the King and Crown Prince and created, for the first time, some written and identifiable rules to govern this crucial process. The creation of the Allegiance Council (Hay’at al-Bay‘ah) was seen as a courageous decision to move away from the system of informal, mostly secretive, consensus among a handful of senior family members who manage and control the selection process, to a new system introducing democratic rules to family politics and establishing equality among all its branches (the sons of the founder). The new rule of “one son, one vote” aimed to reduce the power of the dominant branches of the family which had monopolized all key positions in the past and controlled the crucial issue of succession.
The great majority of citizens praised this move, seeing it as a crucial step not only in the reform of the ruling family institution but also in the reform of the political system of the Kingdom. Such hopes and aspirations were dashed, however, when the King decided to sideline the system that he himself created and cherished. While the December 2007 Royal Decree which allowed the Allegiance Council to take effect made lawful and justifiable exemption from the new rules for the incumbent King and the Crown Prince, to some people’s disappointment, the King missed two opportunities to implement the Allegiance Council rules in choosing Crown Princes (in October 2011 and June 2012). This effectively undermined any future possibility to activate this reform project.
The lack of any clear succession structure in the Kingdom increases uncertainty and even encourages outside interference. Meanwhile, stability inside the Saudi royal family remains the key issue in achieving and preserving the stability of the state. Harmony in the ruling family will reflect positively on the administration of the country as well as on the state’s relations with external powers. And given that the stability of the Kingdom is a cornerstone of regional security such stability needs to be the objective of all internal and external parties.
Abdulaziz Sager, Ph.D., is the founder and chairman of the Gulf Research Center, a think tank and non-governmental organization located in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia and Geneva.
