Newsweek International Magazine 9th November 2018 Back Issue

CAN US MIDEAST POLICY SURVIVE MOHAMMAD BIN SALMAN?
Beaming and giving high fives was Jared Kushner, Trump’s son in- law and senior adviser, who had spent months cultivating a close relationship with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the then thirty one year-old who billed himself as a reformer ready to usher in a new era for the conservative kingdom he was entrusted to run. For the U.S., the alliance was a big bet: Saudi Arabia was unpopular at home and abroad, with the international community favoring Barack Obama’s overture toward Iran and the 2015 nuclear deal he made with it. Kushner argued that reversing course and embracing the kingdom was worth the risk. The young royal would be their man in the Middle East when it came time to make peace between Israelis and Palestinians, using his country’s regional sway to pressure Arab allies into supporting a U.S.-made deal. MBS, once celebrated by the U.S. as a visionary, has increasingly grown to resemble something of an adversary.