SOME INTROSPECTION IN RIYADH
Saudi educational philosophy may be to blame for the propagation of terrorist ideology in the Kingdom, according to a leading Saudi royal. Prince Muhammad al-Abdullah al-Faisal, son of the late King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia and former Undersecretary of the Saudi Education Ministry, has said that the Kingdom’s teaching practices are plagued with inadequacies, and tutelage of the country’s religious curriculum is unstructured. The curriculum – based on the religious teachings of Sheikh Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahhab – presents radical Islamist ideas to children in the earliest stages of education, but fails to ensure that students fully understand what they are learning. The prince faults the tone and method of the teachings for fostering terrorist ideology. (Dubai Al-Arabiya, January 24, 2008)
YEMEN’S CURIOUS COUNTERTERRORISM PRACTICES
Washington often touts Yemen – an impoverished country with “strong tribes and mountainous terrain, and a vast weapons supply” – as among its most valuable counterterrorism allies in the Middle East. But the two governments have found themselves increasingly at odds over how best to deal with the swelling numbers of jihadists packing Yemen’s crowded jails. Sanaa has released dozens of “reformed” jihadists – including a planner of the year 2000 attack on the USS Cole – while providing Saudi-style “Islamic re-education” to some and turning others into government informants. But American concerns are growing that Yemen has been overly lenient with its mujahideen. Local observers agree; “Yemen is like a bus station – we stop some terrorists, and we send others on to fight elsewhere,” says Murad Wahed Zafir, a Yemeni political analyst. “We appease our partners in the West, but we are not really helping.” (New York Times, January 29, 2008)
A U.S.-UZBEK THAW...
The post-9/11 honeymoon between the U.S. and Uzbekistan ended in a rocky divorce in 2005: Washington’s sharp criticism of Uzbek president Islam Karimov’s human rights practices was answered with an abrupt eviction of the U.S. military from the Karshi-Khanabad airbase in that country. Now, however, there are signs that the Bush administration is attempting to mend fences with the former Soviet Republic. In late January, U.S. Central Command chief Admiral William Fallon visited the Central Asian state for meetings with Karimov and top Uzbek foreign and defense ministers. Karimov, who in December hinted that he was ready to improve ties with the West, described the visit as “a remarkable event in mutual relations… and a good chance for discussing military-technical cooperation.” (Agence France Presse, January 24, 2008)
...AND WARM WORDS FOR KAZAKHSTAN
Tashkent is not the only capital in the region actively being courted by Washington: Kazakhstan recently hosted U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense Mitchell Shivers, who lauded the country’s contribution to Coalition efforts in Iraq, as well as the “five-year bilateral plan on military and technical cooperation” between Washington and Astana. The success of that plan has “set a good precedent to take relations to a new level” in the near future, Shivers said in a clear indication of the U.S. government’s plans to improve strategic ties still further with the region’s largest economy. (Karachi Daily Times, February 2, 2008)
A SECURITY TRANSFORMATION IN THE GULF
In a reflection of mounting fears of regional instability, the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) has decided to reorganize its decades-old military structure. A new GCC agreement, initiated by Saudi Arabia, disbands the 9,000-man “Peninsula Shield” force currently based in the Kingdom to make way for a new integrated command center based in Riyadh. Replacing the current standing force is a new structure drawing troops from the GCC’s national armies in the event of an emergency, while coordinating annual military exercises to improve interoperability. Moreover, to complement the much-needed airlift and naval capability being added to the new force, the GCC is mulling a Saudi proposal to more than double its size to 22,000 men under arms. (Defense News, February 4, 2008)