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Saudi Arabia
THE REIGN OF FAHD, 1982-
Fahd, already the major spokesman for the Saudi regime, became
even more active as Khalid's health steadily deteriorated. This
visibility and experience stood him in good stead when Khalid
died after a short illness on June 14, 1982; Fahd immediately
assumed power and Abd Allah, head of the national guard, became
crown prince. One of the first problems that the new king faced
was a 20 percent drop in oil revenues, as a result of a world
oil surplus that developed by 1982 (see Economic Policy During
the Oil Boom, 1974-85 , ch. 3). Despite the fall in revenues,
until the oil price crash of 1986 Saudi Arabia did not make significant
changes in the oil policies it followed beginning in the oil boom
years from 1974 onward. Saudi Arabia also reduced the number of
foreign workers employed in the country during the 1980s. Whereas
a reduction in the number of foreigners had long been an objective,
the drop in oil revenues facilitated its achievement.
The reduction in Saudi Arabia's wealth has not decreased its
influence in the Arab world. The kingdom, and Fahd in particular,
have come to play a mediating role in inter-Arab conflicts. They
continued, for instance, their efforts to stop the fighting in
Lebanon. In 1989 King Fahd brought the entire Lebanese National
Assembly, both Christian and Muslim deputies, to the Saudi resort
city of At Taif. At the time, the assembly had been unable to
meet in Lebanon because of military clashes and political violence.
Once in At Taif, however, the Lebanese deputies voted on a plan
for reform and were eventually able to elect a new president.
Fahd's actions did not solve the problems in Lebanon, but they
helped to end a particular stage of the conflict.
Saudi Arabia has not been so fortunate in its relations with
Iran since Iran's Islamic Revolution in 1979 (see Regional Security
, ch. 4). In November 1987, Saudi Arabia reestablished diplomatic
relations with Egypt (see Arab Nationalism , ch. 4). King Fahd
visited Egypt in March 1989 and received an enthusiastic welcome
on the streets of Cairo. His visit signified the end of Egypt's
temporary isolation within the Arab world, but it demonstrated
at the same time the important position that Saudi Arabia had
achieved. Although Egypt was the country of Nasser, one of the
most charismatic figures of the modern Arab world, it was the
visit of a Saudi king that provided the ritual event to symbolize
Egypt's return to the Arab family.
* * *
For the recent history of Saudi Arabia a good book is Graham
Fuller's Unveiling Saudi Arabia. The best and most accessible
book on the country before 1984 is Robert Lacey's The Kingdom:
Arabia and the House of Saud. Lacey begins essentially with
Abd al Aziz's rise to power, the establishment of the modern state,
and the difficulties faced by Abd al Aziz's successors. A more
analytical discussion of comparable material is found in Christine
Moss Helms' The Cohesion of Saudi Arabia. Information
on Abd al Aziz's relationship with the Ikhwan exists in John Habib's
Ibn Sa'ud's Warriors of Islam.
The leading book for the history of Al Saud before Abd al Aziz
is Bayly Winder's Saudi Arabia in the Nineteenth Century.
For the period of Muhammad ibn Saud and Muhammad ibn Abd al Wahhab,
see George Rentz's article, "Wahhabism and Saudi Arabia." Little
has been written on Arabia in medieval times. Much information
exists, however, on the early Islamic period; the principal Western
author on the subject is W. Montgomery Watt. Anyone interested
in a Muslim presentation of the subject should consider Mohamed
Hassanain Haykal's The Life of Muhammad. For the period
before Islam, see the first two chapters of Philip Hitti's The
Arabs. (For further information and complete citations, see
Bibliography.)
Data as of December 1992
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