Mike Pompeo meets Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in 2019. AFP
Mike Pompeo meets Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in 2019. AFP
Mike Pompeo meets Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in 2019. AFP
Mike Pompeo meets Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in 2019. AFP

Pompeo urges Biden to rebuild US-Saudi relations


Thomas Harding
  • English
  • Arabic

President Joe Biden needs to rebuild America’s relationship with Saudi Arabia so the kingdom again becomes a vital “security partner”, a former US secretary of state has said.

The US president is this month travelling to Saudi Arabia, partly to encourage the world’s biggest oil producers to reduce prices that have spiralled upwards since Russia invaded Ukraine.

But Mike Pompeo, who was secretary of state under Donald Trump, drew attention to previous comments in which Mr Biden had criticised the kingdom.

“For the United States to make them a pariah state is danger­ous for the world,” Mr Pompeo told the London-based Policy Exchange think tank yesterday.

"And the reality came and hit the Biden administration in the face and they're going to go and make it better and I hope that they do.

"I hope the president has a very constructive conversation that is useful and productive and delivers good outcomes for the things that matter to all of us this coming winter.”

Mr Biden, who had made the comments after journalist Jamal Khashoggi was killed in 2018, is looking to reset the relationship in a meeting with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman during a trip to the Middle East starting on July 13 in Israel.

Mr Pompeo praised the significant improvement made in links between Israel and the Gulf region since the signing of the Abraham Accords in 2020.

“I'm glad President Biden is travelling to the kingdom of Saudi Arabia,” he told an online seminar in London.

Highlighting the changes that have occurred under Crown Prince Mohammed, Mr Pompeo said: “There’s a massive amount of reform taking place in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

"If you're a young woman in Saudi Arabia today, you have a lot more opportunities than you did four or five years ago.”

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, welcoming Joe Biden to the UAE in 2016 when the current US President was vice president. Mr Biden will visit the Middle East next week. AP
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, welcoming Joe Biden to the UAE in 2016 when the current US President was vice president. Mr Biden will visit the Middle East next week. AP

Mr Biden, who is making his first trip to the Middle East as president, is keen to reassert US security commitments and influence in the region, which his predecessor Mr Trump was regarded as having neglected.

But Mr Pompeo, 58, defended the former US administration’s use of the “maximum pressure” sanction campaign that he claimed forced Iran’s foreign reserves to drop from $96 billion to only $4bn.

He claimed that the partial lifting of sanctions had already seen the Iranian economy grow by 7 per cent, while Tehran was also developing enough uranium for a nuclear bomb.

Mr Pompeo, who suggested he might "enter politics again” in a potential Republican administration, was critical of Mr Biden’s decision to withdraw US troops from Afghanistan last year.

He claimed the Trump administration would have left “sufficient support” so that Afghan security forces could have maintained control.

Former US secretary of state Mike Pompeo at a rally in Pennsylvania. He has called Saudi Arabia an important security partner with whom President Joe Biden needs to strengthen ties. AFP
Former US secretary of state Mike Pompeo at a rally in Pennsylvania. He has called Saudi Arabia an important security partner with whom President Joe Biden needs to strengthen ties. AFP

“President Biden came in and made a decision that was different, I'm convinced against all military advice," he said. "That's his prerogative, he’s the commander-in-chief.

"His military advisers told him precisely what would happen but he made a decision to pick a certain date, and largely what they had suggested was a high probability actually occurred.

"It not only had a devastating outcome on Afghans, but America is now less credible than it was before.”

He said the subsequent extremist takeover was a “tragedy” and described the Taliban as “nasty, evil and liars”.

Company profile

Name: Steppi

Founders: Joe Franklin and Milos Savic

Launched: February 2020

Size: 10,000 users by the end of July and a goal of 200,000 users by the end of the year

Employees: Five

Based: Jumeirah Lakes Towers, Dubai

Financing stage: Two seed rounds – the first sourced from angel investors and the founders' personal savings

Second round raised Dh720,000 from silent investors in June this year

GIANT REVIEW

Starring: Amir El-Masry, Pierce Brosnan

Director: Athale

Rating: 4/5

Another way to earn air miles

In addition to the Emirates and Etihad programmes, there is the Air Miles Middle East card, which offers members the ability to choose any airline, has no black-out dates and no restrictions on seat availability. Air Miles is linked up to HSBC credit cards and can also be earned through retail partners such as Spinneys, Sharaf DG and The Toy Store.

An Emirates Dubai-London round-trip ticket costs 180,000 miles on the Air Miles website. But customers earn these ‘miles’ at a much faster rate than airline miles. Adidas offers two air miles per Dh1 spent. Air Miles has partnerships with websites as well, so booking.com and agoda.com offer three miles per Dh1 spent.

“If you use your HSBC credit card when shopping at our partners, you are able to earn Air Miles twice which will mean you can get that flight reward faster and for less spend,” says Paul Lacey, the managing director for Europe, Middle East and India for Aimia, which owns and operates Air Miles Middle East.

RACE CARD

5pm: Wathba Stallions Cup – Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (Turf) 2,200m
5.30pm: Khor Al Baghal – Conditions (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,600m
6pm: Khor Faridah – Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,600m
6.30pm: Abu Dhabi Fillies Classic – Prestige (PA) Dh110,000 (T) 1,400m
7pm: Abu Dhabi Colts Classic – Prestige (PA) Dh110,000 (T) 1,400m
7.30pm: Khor Laffam – Handicap (TB) Dh80,000 (T) 2,200m

The Bio

Favourite Emirati dish: I have so many because it has a lot of herbs and vegetables. Harees  (oats with chicken) is one of them

Favourite place to go to: Dubai Mall because it has lots of sports shops.

Her motivation: My performance because I know that whatever I do, if I put the effort in, I’ll get results

During her free time: I like to drink coffee - a latte no sugar and no flavours. I do not like cold drinks

Pet peeve: That with every meal they give you a fries and Pepsi. That is so unhealthy

Advice to anyone who wants to be an ironman: Go for the goal. If you are consistent, you will get there. With the first one, it might not be what they want but they should start and just do it

PRO BASH

Thursday’s fixtures

6pm: Hyderabad Nawabs v Pakhtoon Warriors

10pm: Lahore Sikandars v Pakhtoon Blasters

Teams

Chennai Knights, Lahore Sikandars, Pakhtoon Blasters, Abu Dhabi Stars, Abu Dhabi Dragons, Pakhtoon Warriors and Hyderabad Nawabs.

Squad rules

All teams consist of 15-player squads that include those contracted in the diamond (3), platinum (2) and gold (2) categories, plus eight free to sign team members.

Tournament rules

The matches are of 25 over-a-side with an 8-over power play in which only two fielders allowed outside the 30-yard circle. Teams play in a single round robin league followed by the semi-finals and final. The league toppers will feature in the semi-final eliminator.

French business

France has organised a delegation of leading businesses to travel to Syria. The group was led by French shipping giant CMA CGM, which struck a 30-year contract in May with the Syrian government to develop and run Latakia port. Also present were water and waste management company Suez, defence multinational Thales, and Ellipse Group, which is currently looking into rehabilitating Syrian hospitals.

Top New Zealand cop on policing the virtual world

New Zealand police began closer scrutiny of social media and online communities after the attacks on two mosques in March, the country's top officer said.

The killing of 51 people in Christchurch and wounding of more than 40 others shocked the world. Brenton Tarrant, a suspected white supremacist, was accused of the killings. His trial is ongoing and he denies the charges.

Mike Bush, commissioner of New Zealand Police, said officers looked closely at how they monitored social media in the wake of the tragedy to see if lessons could be learned.

“We decided that it was fit for purpose but we need to deepen it in terms of community relationships, extending them not only with the traditional community but the virtual one as well," he told The National.

"We want to get ahead of attacks like we suffered in New Zealand so we have to challenge ourselves to be better."

BACK%20TO%20ALEXANDRIA
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India Test squad

Virat Kohli (c), Mayank Agarwal, Rohit Sharma, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Hanuma Vihari, Rishabh Pant (wk), Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav, Ishant Sharma, Shubman Gill

COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
 
Started: 2021
 
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
 
Based: Tunisia 
 
Sector: Water technology 
 
Number of staff: 22 
 
Investment raised: $4 million 
match info

Chelsea 2
Willian (13'), Ross Barkley (64')

Liverpool 0

COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Updated: July 04, 2022, 8:11 PM