The inauguration of Joe Biden as the 46th President of the United States was featured on the front pages of all Saudi newspapers Thursday, with commentary ranging from sadness over Trump’s departure to cautiously welcoming the new administration and hoping that it would maintain the close ties forged in recent years. Here is a selection of linked articles and translated passages from the Saudi press in recent days:
Abdulrahman al-Rashed, former editor of Asharq al-Awsat who generally reflects the official mood in Riyadh, had a warm farewell message for Trump on Twitter. He described him as a “brave and honourable man who stood like a mountain against Iran, extremist groups in the region, and other haters inside the United States”. We should be grateful to Trump and “we will long remember him as the man who sought to change our region for the better”, he added.
In his latest column published Thursday, al-Rashed said Trump’s impact would long outlast him but quickly pivoted to the forthcoming Biden era:
It is not possible to be certain about the next steps, but the fear may be exaggerated, as well as considering Biden an extension of Obama’s policy. Indeed, many of the faces nominated have worked in the Obama administration. But their presence does not mean the policy would be identical. Obama failed during his presidency in marketing his policy, particularly forcing Gulf states and Israel to deal with Iran. Then Trump came and besieged Iran’s arms, destroying its financial and economic capabilities. Thus, going back to the same point where Obama left off is nearly impossible, and there are new realities in the past four years: the Russians entering the conflict in Syria, the Iranian incursion into Iraq against American interests, Iran’s threat to oil shipping routes, the Israeli-Gulf alliance against Iran, as well as Tehran’s continuing sabotage activities in Yemen and Lebanon.
Statements by President Biden and his men and women during their presence in the opposition, and then on the campaign trail, have caused concern but in the past few days they offer reasons for optimism. The nominated Secretary of Defense endorsed and praised the assassination of Qassem Soleimani, a position that must have come as a shock to the Iranians. Likewise, the nominated Secretary of State Anthony Blinken has blamed the Houthis and held them responsible for what is happening in Yemen. We should not forget that he was the Deputy Secretary when the war broke out after the Houthis seized power, and he said at the time in 2015: “What Saudi Arabia and its allies have done is a matter of great importance. Saudi Arabia has sent a strong message to the Houthis and their allies, that they cannot overrun Yemen by force, and that they have no other choice but to return to the political transition process that they obstructed”. The important new development is that he pledged the day before yesterday at Congress to include the Gulf states and Israel in any nuclear negotiations with Iran, and this is a completely different position from the policy of Obama who was keen to exclude them and manage them in secret.
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