Despite being just 32 years old, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is one of the most powerful people in the world, having emerged as the likely next king of Saudi Arabia. While bin Salman has yet to assume the throne, his growing influence is being felt across the Kingdom, and that could have ramifications across the region.
Bin Salman has been working to modernize Saudi Arabia, one of the most powerful countries in the Middle East, but one that has frequently been criticized for human rights abuses and other issues. Women, for example, cannot make “major decisions” without permission from their male chaperone. Society, meanwhile, is ruled by a royal family, and despite vast oil wealth, poverty-linked issues remain problematic.
Still, bin Salman has pushed through a rash of reforms regarding women’s rights, modernizing the economy, and in other areas (details provided below). What’s perhaps most important, however, are the geopolitical implications of bringing Saudi Arabia out from the dark ages. Consider that Saudi Arabia is locked in an intense battle for influence in the region with Iran, a larger nation with similarly vast quantities of oil. Compared to Saudi Arabia, Iran is an open, moderate country.
Meanwhile, closer to home, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, and other countries have attracted more foreign investments and have been able to diversify their economies. While Dubai has attracted billions in foreign investments, allowing technology, education, and other sectors to prosper, Saudi Arabia remains dependent on oil.
Saudi Arabia remains influential because of its relatively large size and vast wealth, but otherwise has been falling behind both rivals and allies. This could threaten the nation’s de facto leadership of the Arabian Peninsula. Bin Salman appears set to pursue aggressive reforms.
For example, tourism is coming to Saudi Arabia, with tourist visas being issued for the first time. The country is hoping to generate $47 billion in tourist revenues by 2020. Even if this ambitious goal is not met, tourism visas will bring to an end the near hermit-like status of the country.
Beninese in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. (Credit: Saudi Ministry of Tourism via Wikimedia Commons)
If Saudi Arabia wants to remain a leader in the region and to establish itself as a stronger leader on the global stage, such reforms could prove vital. Liberal Western democracies have often held Saudi Arabia at arms length owing to their more liberal views. Even regionally, Saudi Arabia is viewed as conservative and in some ways backward. For all of the criticism Iran gets, the country is near progressive in comparison to Saudi Arabia.
Yet if bin Salman gets his way, that may be changing in the near future.
Bin Salman’s Rein Could Offer a Stark Contrast to Past Rulers
As is often the case, the generational change of leadership promises to shake up norms and values. Speaking to “60 Minutes” recently, bin Salman stated that women are “absolutely” equal to men and that “we are all human beings and there is no difference.”
To Western audiences, such a claim won’t draw much fanfare. The concept of equality between sexes is already deeply ingrained in the fabric of our society, even if arguably work to achieve true equality remains to be done. However, for religiously conservative Saudi Arabia, such comments hint at potentially seismic changes.
Indeed, since bin Salman ascended to his leadership position, Saudi Arabia has begun to institute subtle but sweeping reforms. Women are now allowed to drive, movie theaters have been opened for the first time in decades, and religious police are seeing their authority curtailed.
Saudi Arabia is also famous for forcing women to wear an abaya, a full-length black cloak that covers every part of a woman’s body, excluding her face and hands. This ranks among the strictest dress codes in the world, far stricter than, say, Iran’s. Yet bin Salman has argued that the Quran does not necessitate such strict dress codes. Instead, women are simply asked to dress respectfully.
Saudi women wearing abayas may soon be privy to changes in attire as Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman hints at equality for women. (Credit: Marcello Casal Jr. via Wikimedia Commons)
Bin Salman pushed even further, suggesting that “extremists” who force the separation of men and women are actually contradicting the teachings of the Prophet Mohammad and life in the early Caliphs. Combined, these comments hint that Saudi Arabia may undergo a period of substantial and even rapid change once Salman assumes the throne.
Roughly two-thirds of Saudi Arabia’s population is under the age of 30, with many of the younger people holding more liberal views. As such, while bin Salman may face some pushback, he’ll also likely enjoy support as well.
