saudi arabia , the next syria ?
Discussion
with the saudi's rapidly running out of money (it is claimed they need around $200 dollars a barrel oil prices to maintain current spending levels) what do the ph collective think is going to happen in saudi in around 3 years time when the money runs out ?
pre trump i thought the americans may have helped them out whether it be money or armed forces to contain civil uprising, now i am not so sure. there is a huge division across the country not widely reported in the msm, i can remember my father mentioning an incident many years ago where the king announced he was going to visit qatif province ,something to do with a new project , and the local rulers announced if he came he would be killed. in other places the king has been known to visit incognito at night to avoid the risk of assassination.
there is a huge divide between east and west along the usual sunni/shia lines but also a hatred of the royal family in many quarters that is all likely to explode when the money runs out.
pre trump i thought the americans may have helped them out whether it be money or armed forces to contain civil uprising, now i am not so sure. there is a huge division across the country not widely reported in the msm, i can remember my father mentioning an incident many years ago where the king announced he was going to visit qatif province ,something to do with a new project , and the local rulers announced if he came he would be killed. in other places the king has been known to visit incognito at night to avoid the risk of assassination.
there is a huge divide between east and west along the usual sunni/shia lines but also a hatred of the royal family in many quarters that is all likely to explode when the money runs out.
gruffalo said:
Can I ask where your $200/barrel comes from as I do not believe they have ever achieved that price?
he said they need 200$ anyway lets hope the Saudis lose all their cash and we turn their backward country into a car park and they can wash the cars.
and their women are free to leave and live like the rest of the world
wc98 said:
with the saudi's rapidly running out of money (it is claimed they need around $200 dollars a barrel oil prices to maintain current spending levels) what do the ph collective think is going to happen in saudi in around 3 years time when the money runs out ?
pre trump i thought the americans may have helped them out whether it be money or armed forces to contain civil uprising, now i am not so sure. there is a huge division across the country not widely reported in the msm, i can remember my father mentioning an incident many years ago where the king announced he was going to visit qatif province ,something to do with a new project , and the local rulers announced if he came he would be killed. in other places the king has been known to visit incognito at night to avoid the risk of assassination.
there is a huge divide between east and west along the usual sunni/shia lines but also a hatred of the royal family in many quarters that is all likely to explode when the money runs out.
The Saudi regime exists purely because of it's relationship with the US.pre trump i thought the americans may have helped them out whether it be money or armed forces to contain civil uprising, now i am not so sure. there is a huge division across the country not widely reported in the msm, i can remember my father mentioning an incident many years ago where the king announced he was going to visit qatif province ,something to do with a new project , and the local rulers announced if he came he would be killed. in other places the king has been known to visit incognito at night to avoid the risk of assassination.
there is a huge divide between east and west along the usual sunni/shia lines but also a hatred of the royal family in many quarters that is all likely to explode when the money runs out.
US has exclusive rights to Saudi Oil - US buys Saudi Oil, Saudi buys US Treasury Bonds with money, US sells Saudi Military hardware and "protects" them.
As long as this arrangement is beneficial to the US, they will ensure that the current Saudi regime is maintained. Even if the Saudi government go broke; if the US still wants their oil, they'll prop them up. If they don't then the country could well implode.
I think their break even point is more like $70-80 a barrel but they are issues there - a lot of unemployment plus the Sunni/Shia divide (which is the Saudi tanks rolled into Bahrain) so I wouldn't be at all surprised if things turned bad.
I remember when I first visited being surprised at how run down the place was. Just demonstrates how much of the oil wealth has gone to the royal family rather than being invested in the country.
I remember when I first visited being surprised at how run down the place was. Just demonstrates how much of the oil wealth has gone to the royal family rather than being invested in the country.
housen said:
gruffalo said:
Can I ask where your $200/barrel comes from as I do not believe they have ever achieved that price?
he said they need 200$ anyway lets hope the Saudis lose all their cash and we turn their backward country into a car park and they can wash the cars.
and their women are free to leave and live like the rest of the world
I dislike Saudi (and the rest of their ilk) as much as everyone else, the way the rich/poor is divided and especially the way they treat women HOWEVER, they keep some form of equilibrium. It's not pretty but it beats every other alternative (aka Civil war)
You need a few 'key states' in that area just to stop the whole corner imploding into basic savagery. It's the same with the anti-Isreal brigade, they fail to realise the stabilising effect/checks & balances they have on their neighbours. Sure they are heavy handed with Hamas etc, but they keep the region in check.
We need to keep Saudi afloat, even if it does make it look like we are propping up a dodgy regime!
You need a few 'key states' in that area just to stop the whole corner imploding into basic savagery. It's the same with the anti-Isreal brigade, they fail to realise the stabilising effect/checks & balances they have on their neighbours. Sure they are heavy handed with Hamas etc, but they keep the region in check.
We need to keep Saudi afloat, even if it does make it look like we are propping up a dodgy regime!
wc98 said:
with the saudi's rapidly running out of money (it is claimed they need around $200 dollars a barrel oil prices to maintain current spending levels) what do the ph collective think is going to happen in saudi in around 3 years time when the money runs out ?
pre trump i thought the americans may have helped them out whether it be money or armed forces to contain civil uprising, now i am not so sure. there is a huge division across the country not widely reported in the msm, i can remember my father mentioning an incident many years ago where the king announced he was going to visit qatif province ,something to do with a new project , and the local rulers announced if he came he would be killed. in other places the king has been known to visit incognito at night to avoid the risk of assassination.
there is a huge divide between east and west along the usual sunni/shia lines but also a hatred of the royal family in many quarters that is all likely to explode when the money runs out.
I read a very good book called inside the kingdom a few years ago, sounds like you would find it interesting.pre trump i thought the americans may have helped them out whether it be money or armed forces to contain civil uprising, now i am not so sure. there is a huge division across the country not widely reported in the msm, i can remember my father mentioning an incident many years ago where the king announced he was going to visit qatif province ,something to do with a new project , and the local rulers announced if he came he would be killed. in other places the king has been known to visit incognito at night to avoid the risk of assassination.
there is a huge divide between east and west along the usual sunni/shia lines but also a hatred of the royal family in many quarters that is all likely to explode when the money runs out.
That war in Yemen is not cheap and they are buying Military kit like its going out of fashion. There is a big IPO of a portion of ARAMCO coming up so that will inject a few $$$$$. What is also really concerning is all the new soldiers they must be training up (as are the other GCC states), once these wars die down and these guys return to "normal" life they may end up disaffected but with the military knowledge to cause some real issues.
The Spruce goose said:
the USA has been running the price of oil down with the help of OPEC countries( SA is in this).
They won't go down the way of Syria, they will be getting massive paybacks for helping the USA try to bankrupt Russia.
This.They won't go down the way of Syria, they will be getting massive paybacks for helping the USA try to bankrupt Russia.
However, Trump appears to be pro-Russian, so the oil price may well creep up again. Trouble is, with Brexit the ££ will weaken further, & as oil goes up, priced in $$, we're a bit f
ked. On the other hand: if the Saudi's become richer again, they will have plenty to buy more weapons from us, thus restoring the balance. They are the 'custodians of Sunni Islam' after all, & their arch-enemy, the (Shia) Islamic Republic of Iran, is flexing its muscles & rattling sabres, having recently received a massive economic boost as a result of the nuclear agreement & ending sanctions.End result? SA won't go the same way as Syria, but will continue proxy wars against Iran, both in Syria & Yemen for the foreseeable future. Once these countries are total toast, which could be very soon, they will probably find a new theatre to do 'business'. Lybia? Another North African Muslim country? Central Asia??
Sadly, it seems inevitable & endless....
tuffer said:
That war in Yemen is not cheap and they are buying Military kit like its going out of fashion. There is a big IPO of a portion of ARAMCO coming up so that will inject a few $$$$$. What is also really concerning is all the new soldiers they must be training up (as are the other GCC states), once these wars die down and these guys return to "normal" life they may end up disaffected but with the military knowledge to cause some real issues.
I read somewhere that they are paying the Pakistani government $$$billions to station some 30,000 Pakistani soldiers on their borders, as they don't have enough trained men of their own...Gassing Station | News, Politics & Economics | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff