On April 4, the pro-monarchy Okaz newspaper carried the following opinion piece by Dr. Nasser Nafeh al-Barrak: “Most Western analysts, particularly the British and some American ones, have been trying to demonize the Saudi actions ever since its new command reached power, although followers of the political history of the Kingdom and the entire region believe they are logical. Hence, these writers and analysts perceive the Saudi steps, i.e. [Operation] Storm of Resolve, the Northern Thunder [exercises], the [formation of the] Islamic coalition, the involvement in the Syrian file, the discontinuation of the aid to the Lebanese Army, the severance of the ties with Iran, and the classification of Hezbollah as a terrorist organization, as being nothing more than a sectarian alignment which will further fuel the conflict in the region.

“They also perceive them as an attempt by the powerful Kingdom to impose regional hegemony – through its young Defense Minister Prince Muhammad bin Salman – to compensate for the “American abandonment...” On the other hand, some Westerners understand the meaning of the new Saudi Arabia and blame their countries, as was done by writer at the Washington Institute David Schenker who said: “The real concern with the new Saudi approach is that it represents a shift away from the traditionally close alliance with Washington. In the aftermath of the Syria chemical weapons red-line debacle, a move away from the 2015 commitment to remove Assad, and the nuclear deal with Iran, Riyadh has determined that Washington is no longer a reliable ally.” And judging from the latest Saudi policy initiatives, “it seems that the Kingdom has decided to go it alone, to pursue its interests without regard for the wishes of the US...”

“We can therefore say that the segments trying to study the new Saudi action have started to realize that a state enjoying the Kingdom’s size, depth and Islamic, Arab and international weight, cannot link its fate to any alliance, no matter how essential or influential it may be... And what the Saudi popular class dubs the “resolve era,” in reference to the command’s new approach, has found noticeable local support, and is perceived by the Islamic world as a necessity to protect the strategic depth of the Islamic world’s qibla, which has practically become threatened with by the Houthis’ weapons... In addition, most of the Islamic (Sunni) world perceives Saudi Arabia’s security as being more important than Sudan’s, Morocco’s or Libya’s, as it was recently said by Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir in an interview with the Saudi Okaz newspaper...

“On the other hand, the Saudis realized that America, which is reconciling with Tehran, is no longer interested [in the Arab world], in light of its actions and behavior towards the Arab countries. As a result, a Saudi action was needed, and it was closer to a proclamation of a state of emergency on the military, political and legal levels... Hence, the multiple fronts and new threats faced by Saudi Arabia shed light on its points of strength, and revealed the need of the Arab and Islamic world to come together to save itself... And this delivered numerous messages, the fastest repercussions of which was the sudden Russian withdrawal from Syria, especially after Saudi Arabia announced that the continuation of the Syrian situation was a red line.”