U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken meets Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman amid strained ties

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived Jne 7 in Saudi Arabia and later met Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman amid strained relations between Riyadh and Washington.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived Tuesday in Saudi Arabia and later met Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman amid strained relations between Riyadh and Washington.

Mr. Blinken's trip, his second to Saudi Arabia since becoming America's top diplomat, comes after the kingdom under Prince Mohammed has been more willing to disregard the U.S. in striking its own decisions. Riyadh has clashed repeatedly with President Joe Biden on its supply of crude oil to global markets, its willingness to partner with Russia in OPEC+ and reaching a détente with Iran mediated by China. Mr. Biden also pledged to make Saudi Arabia a “pariah” over the 2018 killing of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi.

However, Saudi Arabia still relies — like other Gulf Arab nations — on the U.S. to be the security guarantor for the wider Middle East as tensions over Iran's nuclear program in recent years have spilled over into a series of attacks. Riyadh and Washington also have been working in tandem to try and strike a lasting cease-fire in Sudan, which has been elusive during weeks of fighting between that country's military and a rival paramilitary force. And Saudi Arabia wants to end its war in Yemen, something also sought by the U.S.

“Under the hood, especially when it comes to security and a few other matters like that, the relationship is stronger than it was a year ago,” said Hussein Ibish, a senior resident scholar at the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington. “It looks more strained — and in some superficial ways it is — but it is overall stronger.”

Mr. Blinken arrived to a Saudi Arabia more eager to engage internationally, particularly after being involved in prisoner swaps in Moscow's war on Ukraine. The kingdom hosted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky last month at an Arab League summit, then Russia's sanctioned interior minister immediately after.

With oil prices well below $100 a barrel, the Biden administration doesn’t have an immediate concern over prices at the pump in the summer driving season. Washington likely does hope to leverage its security relationship with Saudi Arabia as it gets warmer with China and Russia. However, the Saudis likely want guarantees that Mr. Biden can't provide when it comes to Congress stopping arms sales to the kingdom, Mr. Ibish said.

“Khashoggi still haunts the halls of Congress. I don’t think that’s over in Washington,” Ibish said. “The rest of the world has moved on, but I don’t think that Congress has moved on.”