Why Saudi Arabia wants to be a peacemaker in the Middle East

The Middle East, etched into the Western psyche as a region prone to conflict, economic malaise and geopolitical rivalry, is now awash in a frenzy of diplomatic activity. Much of the action is springing from an unlikely source: Mohammed Bin Salman (MBS). The young, ambitious Saudi crown prince is making quite a personal transformation—and it’s one that should be encouraged.

Even before he won the job after a cut-throat battle with Mohammed Bin Nayef, his older and more respectable cousin, the US and its allies perceived MBS to be a hot-headed, impulsive workaholic with big dreams for Saudi Arabia but very little patience. MBS wanted to turn the country into an economic and technological powerhouse, challenge the rigid social rules that had dominated Saudi life since the founding of the al-Saud dynasty, and bring the Arab world’s most important country into the 21st century. 

But the Saudi royal came with a destructive streak. MBS believed the kingdom had an exclusive right to leadership in the Middle East and didn’t tolerate others standing in his way.