The Mohammed bin Salman cliché
Saudi Arabia's new reality has a difficult hurdle to overcome if it is to gain recognition in some sectors of the international community. The intense work of modernisation that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is carrying out in a country with rigid Wahhabi principles is overshadowed by the unacceptable case of the murder in Turkey of the Saudi journalist Jamal Kashougui, a critic of the Kingdom's leaders. The shadow of the case has haunted Bin Salman's activity in recent years, despite the trial and conviction of the perpetrators and instigators of an abominable crime. The CIA accused him of being responsible for the assassination and the Crown Prince's explanations and denials have been of no use in getting rid of a label with too many connotations and with numerous doubts about the true interests of the US intelligence agency.
If the CIA had so much evidence to produce a report with such sharp and negative conclusions for the next Saudi head of state, it should have made it available to the court that judged the case in order to definitively settle a situation that conditions the external action of a country that is fundamental for international stability. And that of those who are trying to redirect the situation, such as US President Joe Biden and their fist bump during their meeting in Jeddah, or French President Emmanuel Macron, at the Elysée Palace where he received Bin Salman who currently holds the key to a possible increase in oil production to lower prices.
The energy crisis in Europe over the confrontation with Russian President Vladimir Putin following his invasion of Ukraine demands that scruples and some principles be put aside. All those who claim to be the world's defenders of human rights have demonised Biden and Macron for associating with Bin Salman. However, none of the media that always remember the abominable case of the journalist Kashougui when talking about the Saudi prince, do not use an equivalent tagline when referring to Putin, who we could consider the murderer of civilians in Ukraine, or Maduro, Xi Jinping, Khamenei and so many others.
It may not be politically correct to draw attention to Saudi Arabia's progress in women's rights, its management of Vision 2030 to diversify income, its commitment to digitalisation and new technologies with a city project such as NEOM that sets us on a spectacular future, and many other facets that guarantee stability and progress for the region. In addition, its decisive role in preventing the expansion of the Iranian ayatollahs' regime.