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King Abdullah’s Successor Pledges Continuity in Saudi Arabia King Abdullah’s Successor Pledges Continuity in Saudi Arabia
(about 7 hours later)
BEIRUT, Lebanon — Hours after the death of Saudi Arabia’s ruler, his successor, King Salman, moved quickly on Friday to project a sense of continuity, saying in a televised address that the oil-rich nation, a Western ally that has long played a dominant role in Arab politics, would not change course. BEIRUT, Lebanon — Saudi Arabia’s new king moved swiftly on Friday to assert the continuity of his family’s rule, declaring that he would not veer from Saudi traditions and appointing two younger successors who could lead the oil-rich monarchy for decades to come.
“We will continue adhering to the correct policies which Saudi Arabia has followed since its establishment,” Salman, the former crown prince, declared. In a region wracked with war and instability, the orderly ascension of King Salman so promptly after the death of his half brother, King Abdullah, projected an image of cohesiveness unshaken by the region’s many crises.
Salman was speaking as leaders from the Muslim world converged in Riyadh, the Saudi capital, for the funeral of Abdullah, his brother. Abdullah steered his deeply conservative land through the turmoil of the Arab Spring and was caught up in the region’s seething rivalries before his death early Friday at 90. “We will continue adhering to the correct policies which Saudi Arabia has followed since its establishment,” Salman declared in a televised address.
In his address, Salman seemed to acknowledge the tensions that have gripped the region, playing out in Syria’s civil war and the consequent rise of the militant group Islamic State, also known as ISIS and ISIL. He assumes the throne at a time when significant challenges face his realm, the world’s leading oil exporter and one of the United States’s strongest allies in the Arab world.
“The Arab and the Islamic nations are in dire need for solidarity and cohesion,” the king said. The extremists of the Islamic State continue to draw new recruits, including hundreds of young Saudis, and the Western-backed government in neighboring Yemen has collapsed, creating new opportunities for Al Qaeda, which dreams of ending the Saudi monarchy’s control of Islam’s holiest sites.
The comments came just one day after the American-backed government of neighboring Yemen abruptly collapsed, leaving the country leaderless in the face of an increasingly powerful force of pro-Iranian rebels and a resurgent Qaeda affiliate. The recent fall in world oil prices may strain the country’s finances as it seeks to diversify its economy and to integrate its large and not particularly well-educated youth population into the work force.
With events in Saudi Arabia under close scrutiny — not least from Iran, Saudi Arabia’s greatest rival — leaders including President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey, who was touring African countries, shifted their schedules to attend what news reports said would be a simple and traditional burial. Analysts said they did not expect Salman to pursue policies significantly different from the gradual reformist agenda of his predecessor. Salman’s only immediate policy initiative on Friday was to clarify who would succeed him. The issue was a pressing one because the new monarch is thought to be 79 years old, and he has had various health problems.
King Abdullah II of Jordan canceled a planned appearance at the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Reuters reported, where he was scheduled to lead a debate on security in the Middle East. President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi of Egypt was also among the Muslim leaders and heads of state expected to attend. The new appointments appeared to resolve a thorny generational issue. So far, every king of Saudi Arabia since the death of the country’s founder, King Abdulaziz, in 1953 has been one of his dozens of sons — Salman is the fifth to reign.
Several countries around the region, including Lebanon, announced three days of official mourning. Egypt called for an entire week of mourning. Abdullah had been a crucial financial and political backer of Mr. Sisi’s as he ousted the elected Muslim Brotherhood government. Under the royal decrees issued Friday, one more half brother — Muqrin — has been named crown prince and next in line for the throne. After him will come the country’s powerful interior minister, Mohammed bin Nayef, who was named deputy crown prince on Friday; he is the first heir to the throne from among Abdulaziz’s grandsons.
Abdullah’s death had an immediate economic effect, too, on oil prices, which had been in decline for months but rose in a reflection of concern about what the king’s death will mean for Saudi Arabia’s oil production policies. “This settles for a long time the question of succession to the next generation,” said Steffen Hertog, an associate professor of comparative politics at the London School of Economics. “It removed a bit of worry for a lot of Saudis, who thought that there would be infighting.”
Despite the tensions between Iran and Saudi Arabia, Tehran said Friday that its foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, would attend an official memorial service for Abdullah. The Iranian Foreign Ministry also expressed “condolences to the government and people of Saudi Arabia.” The most important ministries in the Saudi government are held by members of the royal family, and Salman did not announce any changes to the roster, other than to appoint his son Prince Mohammed bin Salman to replace him as defense minister and to lead the royal court. Longtime figures kept their posts, including Prince Bandar bin Sultan who remains the national security council adviser.
The rivalry between the two countries is one of the region’s principle fault lines. It is in part a geopolitical struggle between nations that see themselves as the regional superpower and the leader of the Islamic world. But it also reflects the broader division between Shiites, who govern in Iran, and Sunnis, such as those who dominate in Saudi Arabia. Frederic Wehrey, who studies Saudi Arabia for the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, said that the choice of Mohammed bin Nayef, a leader in the Saudi fight against Islamic militants, suggested that relations with the United States would remain strong.
In the Syrian civil war, the two powers have backed opposing sides, with Saudi Arabia supporting efforts to oust President Bashar al-Assad and Iran backing his dogged efforts to remain in power. “The centerpiece of Saudi-U.S. cooperation has always been on the intelligence level, and Mohammed bin Nayef has been at the center of that,” he said.
News reports, quoting a royal decree in Saudi Arabia, said Salman left much of the government unchanged but made two key appointments, naming his son, Mohammad bin Salman, as defense minister and head of the royal court, and Mohammed bin Nayef, the interior minister, as deputy crown prince. The biggest challenge the country faces may be one at least partly of its own making, the decline in the oil revenues that form the economic foundation of the state. As the dominant producer in OPEC, Saudi Arabia’s decisions on production levels have enormous influence on world oil markets, and it has maintained fairly high output recently despite an oversupplied market, helping to depress prices.
The appointments were seen as important because they signal for the first time a new generation of the Saudi elite being elevated to high office, potentially injecting new energy into a government in which decisions have typically been made at a glacial pace. Saudi leaders use their oil income not only to affect regional politics but to pacify their own people. After the popular uprisings known as the Arab Spring toppled or threatened several Saudi allies in the region, Saudi Arabia responded by bankrolling its friends abroad and spending lavishly on domestic projects.
The royal court in Saudi Arabia did not disclose the exact cause of Abdullah’s death, which came after the monarch was admitted to a Riyadh hospital on Dec. 31 with what the official Saudi Press Agency said was a lung infection. The country, with significant reserves of wealth, does not face an immediate financial crisis, but a long period of low oil prices could limit its ability to maneuver, both abroad and at home.
Reuters said the king’s body, wrapped in white, would be buried in an unmarked grave after resting in a mosque, where prayers would be led by Salman. “Things are always stable in Saudi Arabia when they can afford to keep paying,” Mr. Hertog said.
Among Western allies, Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. said that he would lead an American delegation, “to pay our respects and offer condolences.” King Salman’s ascension came the day after the abrupt collapse of the government of neighboring Yemen, leaving that country leaderless in the face of pro-Iranian rebels and a resurgent Al Qaeda affiliate.
In his address, King Salman acknowledged the region’s tensions. “The Arab and the Islamic nations are in dire need for solidarity and cohesion,” he said.
The scene in Riyadh on Friday clearly demonstrated Saudi Arabia’s regional clout. Leaders like President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey swiftly rearranged their schedules to fly to the Saudi capital for King Abdullah’s funeral. King Abdullah II of Jordan canceled an appearance at the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, in order to attend. President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi of Egypt, whose government has received billion of dollars in Saudi support, was expected to be there as well, and his government announced an unusual weeklong period of national mourning.
Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. said he would lead an American delegation to the funeral “to pay our respects and offer condolences.”
Despite tensions between Iran and Saudi Arabia, the Iranian government also offered condolences on Friday, and said that its foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, would attend an official memorial service for Abdullah.
The rivalry between the two countries is one of the region’s principal fault lines. It is in part a geopolitical struggle between nations that each see themselves as the natural leading power in the region and in the Islamic world. But it also reflects the broader division between Shiite Muslims, who govern in Iran, and Sunni Muslims like those who dominate in Saudi Arabia.
In the Syrian civil war, the two countries back opposing sides, with Saudi Arabia supporting efforts to oust President Bashar al-Assad while Iran has helped him remain in power.
The royal court in Saudi Arabia did not disclose the cause of Abdullah’s death. He had been hospitalized in Riyadh since New Year’s Eve with what the official Saudi Press Agency said was a lung infection.
Worshipers led by Salman prayed over his body in a mosque on Friday, and then it was wrapped in white cloth and carried on a pallet to be buried in a simple grave, in line with the kingdom’s austere interpretation of Islam.