Secret Handshakes: Saudi Arabia's Israel Strategy Exposed! Geopolitical Trends

Hello everybody and welcome to Geopolitical Trends, where truth matters. I'm your host, Dr. Oualaalou, excited to be with you. I'm even more excited, and I mean it, uh, it's because of the topic I'm going to be addressing for you today. This has to do with the visit of the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman, to Washington. He's right now in Washington, as a matter of fact. But not only about that, is also because I wrote extensively on the Middle East, but mainly on Saudi Arabia. And I wrote a book about them, and I detailed certain information pertaining to what is going on right now. So, so what I'm going to be providing you with, I'm going to be providing you with an in-depth analysis regarding this aspect, just to put things in perspective for you to understand: is this a strategic alignment on part of Saudi Arabia, or this is a reflection of its weakness? Simple as that. Because doesn't mean they come in here buying F-35s and so forth, that means they are in a position of strength. That might be the reverse. And this is what I'm gonna be sharing with you in this live stream. But first, I'd like to say hi to our supportive and wonderful and inquisitive community. Liane, good to see you. Mr. Amhara, good to see you. Willie Holman, as always. Hamza Ali, good to see you. Zayan, good to see you as always. Truth Seeker, uh, Abdul, Abdullah Ali Muhammad, good to see you. Uh, who— Truth Seeker is here. Uh, who else is here? Farhad Razavi, good to see you as always. American Citizen, good to see you. Soccer 088, good to see you. Uh, uh, Atin Wu, as always. I am looking for Ramples01 because he sent me a comment. He said, I will see you there. So anyway, it will be there. Uh, good to see you. And, uh, oh my gosh, look at this one, guys! Someone from 785AR from Kuwait. Good to have you here. So, all right, let's get in. By the way, some housekeeping items. I, I lined up about 5 or 6 interviews for you. So as a matter of fact, the first one is gonna be tomorrow at 9 AM my time, Central Standard Time, because my guest Anna Malindog, she is in the, uh, in, in, in, in Asia, as you know. So she will be here tomorrow. We will be talking about what is going on in Philippines. There are some major chaos emerging not only about corruption but political and so forth. So, uh, Anna, I reached out to her and she was kind enough to really, really carve out time for us. So she will be here tomorrow at 09:00 Eastern, uh, Central Standard Time, uh, in the morning. So I look forward to that conversation. I am also going to have on the 20th, I'm gonna have two guests. I will do two live streams for you. One is in our regular time, which will be on the 20th at noon, And that will be with Dr. Yan Lian. She will be here, uh, uh, at, at 12, I think 12:15 on the 20th. And on the same day at 1900 hours, I will have Jayant Bahundari coming down here. You all remember I mentioned to you about, I am working on topic for India and I decided I'm not gonna, gonna do it by myself. I'm gonna invite Jayant Bahundari to really, uh, contribute to that conversation. And after that, I'm gonna have Carlza either this weekend or next week. And of course, my two best friends, Ina Tangen and Dr. Warwick Pao. So they will be here next week. I'm gonna reach out, uh, to them and line up the time. So, so very, very exciting a few days coming up. So make sure to join me because, you know, I'll do this for you guys, for the community, and for us all to learn. So I have one headline for you. And this headline pertains to what's going on. As a matter of fact, uh, it is 12, so it's 13:30 right now in Washington, DC. There is a vote is going to be in Congress, the House of Representatives, at 14:00 Central Standard Time. And this one has to do about voting for the release of the Epstein files. So makes you just wonder if the policymaker is going to do the right thing. And release the information because this is not about just Epstein's atrocities. I call them atrocities, sex trafficking in minors and all that. That's to me, you know, I don't know, I kind of, I get upset with stuff like that. But anyway, the House of Representatives is going to vote at 1400 hours regarding the release of the Epstein file. This is pertaining to, of course, uh, the late accused sex trafficker and convicted, uh, sex— and of course it was a, an agent of a foreign country and so forth, Mossad, that is. So, so several now, several tranches of the files, okay, relating to the prosecution of Epstein. So for these sexual offenses against minors, this is where the problem is. So, and of course the sex trafficking already. Now some of this has been released already. But many more remains sealed, and this is where the vote is going to be about. And I bet you this, the reason why they remain sealed, because you have some really high powerful individuals' names listed in that list. So we'll see once again if the, uh, the, uh, Congress will do the right thing. I, I doubt it, but again, I could be wrong. I have a question for you regarding this, and I'd like you to answer. It's yes or no. In your opinion, do you believe Donald Trump will veto the decision if the Congress decide to release the files? Yes or no. In your opinion, do you believe Donald Trump will veto it? So, all right, let's get in into our conversation for today, and this has to do with the visit of the MBS Mohammed bin Salman, the de facto leader, has been concentrating power. Of course, he's in Washington meeting with Donald Trump. So the idea that, like I mentioned earlier, and again, it's a topic I know quite a deal about because not only the years I spent working inside Saudi Arabia on a governmental level, so I understand the ins and outs of their domestic politics, but also has to do with me writing articles and my books about the, the Saudi Arabia. So I have an in-depth understanding of it. And to me, the way I look at this visit, you know, because I am looking at whether the Saudis now are realizing this is about strategic alignment, but strategic alignment not from a position of strength, but rather from a position of weaknesses. Because here is the thing you need to understand, there is this particular aspect. So if the Saudi is pivoting to, to, towards its formal US security commitments, there is an additional thing to that, and this one has to do with the Israeli normalization. And all those two things, the pivoting towards the formal US security commitments and the normalization of the, uh, uh, relations with Israel, in my opinion, in my assessments, in my analysis, it reveals that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is trapped by a structural weakness. Because why? Because Saudi Arabia is unable to project now power independently. They can't. So, and of course The Crown Prince, MBS, is sacrificing now the public religious solidarity. In other words, sacrif— using Islam, sacrificing all this. So especially when it comes down to the issue of the Palestinians, and this in itself contradicts the domestic opinion inside Saudi Arabia. And this is why he is after the F-35s to secure the defense guarantees because he saw what happened to Qatar. If he is going to trust the Israelis, uh, more power to him. So, and all this has nothing to do with the safety of the Saudis. No, no, no, no, don't get— don't get it wrong. This has to do with the survival of the regime in itself. And of course, it falls under that pretext of the Vision 2030, which has nothing to do with the reality. Because Saudis have nothing. I was there, I spent years back and forth, you know, Saudis don't produce anything. If it weren't for oil, we won't be talking about Saudi Arabia to begin with. As a matter of fact, uh, I— when I wrote my book, I ended with one quote, and not a quote, one sentence that suggests, you know, if it weren't for oil, we will be saying good morning Arabia. There will be no Saudi Arabia. So, so, and this is in my opinion represents— this dynamics represents really the realpolitik in its stark form. It's stark. That's, that's the way I see it. So because why? You're looking at a geopolitical necessity now that is overriding ideological principles. There is the key for you to understand what this is all about. So I'm going to get into the depth and the detail of it. And I will end it with some conversation about, or rather not a conversation, but rather analysis about the 9/11 victims, the American families. Because if you know the Saudi link to 9/11, which is a conversation, uh, by itself for some other time. So, so several weeks ago, several weeks ago, the United States, as a matter of fact, I'm going to start with that. Several weeks ago, there is a judge in the, uh, the federal district in New York. His name is Judge George B. Daniels. Here is what he ruled out. He ruled against Saudi Arabia's effort to dismiss the lawsuit brought against them by the families of 9/11 victims, so, which alleged the country was partly to the— was party to the attacks that happened in 9/11. So Daniels, the judge, that is decision to let the case go to trial, appear to agree with the judge claiming in his August 2025 of this year ruling. And I was aware of that because I was following it from a distance, never spoke about it in a live stream. It's just because if I am to do this, I have to take you back to September, uh, 2011. To understand the evolvement of that. But his ruling on 2025, August 2025, is that Saudi government agents provided essential support for the hijackers. So I was aware of it, I was in the IC, so he kind of had access to certain information that wasn't publicly available. I still cannot talk about certain things, as you know, It's the law. I have to respect the law. Just because I don't work in Washington doesn't mean I cannot observe the law, and I will, I will, I will respect the law. So, so here's the thing. The backdrop, the backdrop of this visit now of the MBS to, uh, uh, to Washington, and as a matter of fact, he is meeting, uh, with, uh, Donald Trump. So the backdrop of this is the recent ruling of this federal judge. And I'm going to send you or provide you rather a link where you can read in detail really what the judge had to say, Daniels, that is what he had to say about this one. I just want you to understand because there is already calls for Donald Trump to do something about it. I have my doubts because remember, 3,000 civilians have died. And here is the thing, and I'm gonna quote this because that's exactly how it is in the article. The backdrop to this visit is the recent ruling of a federal judge in New York that Saudi Arabia must stand trial for its role of the 9/11 terrorist attacks that murdered 3,000 of our loved ones, end of quote. So, and I'll let you read the article because I'm gonna have to get in into the geopolitical aspects of the visit. So, so I'm gonna start with a, a simple question: is the visit significant? You know, it's symbolic importance, of course. You're gonna have to think about MBS visit marks his first return to Washington since 2018. When he was— I don't know if you were following at that time— when he was effectively— what was he at that time? It was a pariah. You all know about this gentleman here. I'm gonna put a picture. If you know the name, if you can type it for me or just mention the first name, let me see in the chat box if you happen to know who this gentleman is. He passed away in a gruesome way, by the way, very gruesome. So I'll get back. Oh, Jamal, you got it. Sangbury, Jamal Khashoggi, you got it. Farhad Razavi, you guys got it. Jamal Khashoggi. So the idea that we need to understand, because of what, MBS involvement on it. And this is why at that time he butted head, he butted head with the CIA. Why? Because we were listening to his conversation and we have it on the record and the evidence that he ordered the takedown of Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi consulate in Turkey. And you all know what— I'm not going to get into the detail because it's a gruesome way of how they disposed his body. What a shame. And yet they call themselves Muslims. It's beyond me. It's just beyond me. Stuff. And this is why the CIA assessments found that the prince ordered the assassination. Of course, he had to deny the involvement. And if you remember at that time, uh, what's his name, the incompetent, uh, uh, Donald— not Donald Trump, well, yeah, he is the other one, uh, Joe Biden. He like, we're gonna hold MBS to the law and all that. All that was nothing but hypes. And there is a reason for that. And this is where you need to understand the significance of this, or the importance at least, is that the shift from being a pariah status to being welcomed with the state visit level. Then you can— you have to think about the geopolitical reset. Yeah, no matter what the Saudis say about their relationship with Iran, Don't get fooled. Don't be fooled. There is a reset because the visit reflects now not only from Donald Trump's perspective, which is a broader effort to deepen the ties with the Gulf state for one reason, is to normalize relations of the states with Israel. Has nothing to do with the US because Israel has something on Donald Trump. I'm sure you heard the latest email of what happened between Donald Trump and Bill Clinton. It's vulgar enough, I'm not going to talk about it here, because if I am to talk about it, I have to do a full live stream for you to have the full picture. Even the Russian president has a picture of it. So the, the— for, for Donald Trump to deepen these ties with the Gulf States And this following his trip in May 2025 to Saudi Arabia. And this is where the kingdom back then pledged about $600 billion of investments in the US. We don't know that, but they do have, I must admit, they do have a lot of money here in, in, uh, in, in the US in addition to gold. Saudis have no choice because if they, they, if they don't toe the line We will freeze those assets. And this represents now a major reorientation of US-Saudi relations compared to Biden administration. And this where Biden promised to make Saudi Arabia a pariah over human rights concerns. You all know what we say versus what we do. Now, there are some key issues on the table. US and Saudis are working now to finalize some agreements on defense, on security cooperation, and of course with the Trump also eager to persuade the Saudis to join the Abraham Accord to normalize relations with Israel. This is what I'm saying, what the Saudis, the Jordanians, the Egyptians, the Emirates, the Qataris, the Kuwaitis, you name it The leadership, we're not talking about people here, the leadership. There are deals behind closed doors with the Israelis. I was aware of one, especially with the Saudis, and this is nothing new. It's been for years, and I'm gonna share the declassified, uh, uh, aspects of it with you in this conversation. Suffice it to say for now, we need to understand the idea of the economic dimensions. Because there is an economic dimension to all this that you need to understand. It's very, very important. And why is this important? It's because the idea of, uh, this demand, this economic dimensions, uh, it's, it's beyond, go beyond diplomacy. So one may say, well, this is a signaling to the, uh, the, uh, deepening the commercial Ties between the two countries. So because Saudis are somehow focusing on AI, the data centers, technology and so forth, but the Saudis also wants access to nuclear technology. All this so-called as part of the Vision 2030. I have a picture of you for you here. I give credit to Al Jazeera for this to highlight to you. Let me see if I can. I don't know how I can make it. Yeah, I can. Right there, make it bigger for you just to see. This is the top US exports to Saudi Arabia and top Saudi oil, uh, top Saudi exports to the US. So what does Saudi export to the US? Nothing except oil. That's about it. Take the oil out of the picture, it will be nothing left. And once again, this is what I want you to understand, the importance of why This makes sense from the perspective of understanding, uh, this particular, uh, uh, dimension of this relationship. So I'm gonna see if I can play a clip for you here. Uh, bear with me here, just give me a second. Okay, it's playing commercial. I'm gonna get rid of— not play, but it's, it's short anyway, so All right, let me share this clip with you because I need you to hear this aspect, because it will give you at least a base or a foundation on which to, uh, sort of process the information that I'm going to be sharing with you. Let's take a listen, please.

Saudi Arabia's push for new US defense guarantees began after a major shock to its security. In 2019, coordinated drone and missile attacks struck the Abqaiq and Khurais oil facilities.

Okay, I, I will be going back and forth in this. Why? Because I wrote an article about this particular incident in which the Saudis at that time said, in coordination with the US, you know what they said? They said that the Patriot missile systems sort of, uh, the batteries of the Patriot countered the missiles. I argued in the article that it was a lie because it weren't, because it was the oil refineries were attacked by the Ansarullah or Houthis missiles, which means what? It shows that the defensive, uh, uh, uh, systems of the US, the, the, the, the Patriot, are useless. And here we are. This is an evidence of, of, of that. Let's continue listening here.

Briefly halving the country's oil production. Yemen's Houthi movement claimed responsibility, but Saudi Arabia, the United States, and European governments said the attack was consistent with Iranian-made systems and likely planned or launched by Iran.

That's another lie. It wasn't launched by Iran. Iran had nothing to do. Iran did indeed help the Houthis and Ansarullah, and it's not a secret. It's the fact that the Houthis were able to launch that directly. And what the South is, the US and some Europeans trying to pull Iran into the conflict for a reason.

Tehran denied involvement. For Riyadh, the incident exposed the scale of the missile and drone threat it faces and raised questions about whether the US would intervene or retaliate on its behalf. Saudi Arabia's request for the US-made F-35, one of the most advanced fighter jets in the world, seems to have been accepted.

No, I am planning on doing that.

They want to buy.

We've been a great ally. They've got to like us very much. Look at the Iran situation, what we did in terms of obliterating, you know, their— we obliterated That's a lie. We did not obliterate the Iranians. As a matter of fact, the nuclear facility is still operating. Yes, we caused damage, but we have not obliterated, as Donald Trump says, because Donald Trump tends to, you know how it is, exaggerate the stuff. The same argument I've always made about the Houthis when he said we will sort of return them to the Stone Age. Yeah, we end up the one taking a hike because we had to leave for fear of having our destroyer, the aircraft carrier, uh, the, uh, at the time Eisenhower, uh, we were afraid of, of it being attacked. That's the reason why. Their nuclear capability. Yeah, I will say that we will be doing that. We'll be selling F-35s.

Stealth technology, integrated sensors, and long-range precision weapons. Making it central to US air power. And until now, Israel remains the only Middle East country clear to operate the jet under—

That is true. Israel remained the main one. But here is where the difference is, is that whether the US will sell the— as, as you may know, there are 3 types of, of F-35s. There's A, B, and C. That's the level. The top one being A, of course, and it costs over $109 million each. Whatever, 110. The other two between 82 and 89 or 90, somewhere around that. It's beside the point. The key thing is that we are not going to give the Saudis F-35A. We might give them F-35C. And mind you that we have control over a switch, I mean a kill switch that we have control over it. Even the Israelis themselves, when they get the F-35s, they said, we want the same one you have. Even though the only thing we did was some really minor avionic changes here and there, and they weren't happy with that. And it's correct what the statement said about Israel being the only one. There is now a second country that might be getting those F-35s, and this one is Morocco. The problem that I see for Morocco is the maintenance. The problem with F-35s is the maintenance, the cost of it. It costs arms and legs. So Saudis, we might say, in comparison to Morocco, it's very wealthy. They can afford it financially. But are they going to be using it? No, because they can't even fly it. They will have to have Americans fly it for them. So that's the, the bottom line to that.

Washington's commitment to preserve Israel's so-called qualitative military edge.

It's really such an advanced piece of warfare machinery. Um, it's, it's the apex predator right now in air, also the world.

To letting that— watched neighboring Qatar deepen its defense relationship with Washington, including an agreement that treats threats against Qatar as threats to US interests.

Okay, I'm gonna stop right here, uh, uh, guys, because I have a lot to cover. So, so when they say about Qatar to prot— you know, where was the US when the Israelis went all the way to Doha and bomb whatever they needed to bomb. Saudis are nervous about that too, despite talking to Israel behind closed doors. That's what I need you to understand, the differences. So when we put this in the context, the visit in context, uh, it illustrates one particular thing, and that is how geopolitical calculations now can override previous concerns, if we may use the term. So Saudi Arabia's strategic weight in the Middle East is going down, has been going down, particularly now in countering China and securing regional influence. This is also why the US wanted to do this. So, and this one appears to outweigh human rights considerations in the Trump administration's calculus. That's why we are not talking about human rights in Saudi Arabia or whatever they do. It's the country, they can decide whatever they want to do. So becomes the question, what could come out of this visit? The most significant, if we are to sort of think of it in this term, well, the trip signals once again, as I said, Saudi Arabia is welcomed in the White House. And the significance of it or the signal is sending that is a close ally for the Trump administration because the Trump administration is transactional. So Saudi Arabia still hedging its bet in, in terms of the security and trade, especially security, because the survival of the monarchy depends on the United States. There is no other way. They can buy all the weapons they want, they still have to depend on the United States because US remains an important partner and protector of the kingdom, of the monarchy, not the whole Saudi Arabia, the monarchy. So, so that's why the US is unlikely to sort of wrangle normalization out of the Saudis, while the Saudis may not get the full security agreement that they are hoping for. So suffice it to say, MBS visit could also have an impact on the Middle East moving forward. Why? Because to Trump, he's seeing in MBS somebody who is not well-versed into international affairs, uh, uh, he's seeing him as an ally, which means what? His influence could contribute to push the agenda of Trump in the region. And the agenda on what? Normalization of relations with Israel. This is why Donald Trump is doing the bidding for Tel Aviv, not the other way around. So the other reason you need to think about it, if you are to analyze this, who was here in Washington about a week and a half ago or two? It was none other than the terrorist Joulani, or the interim president. We'll give him the sort of the title has been given as of now, interim president, Joulani, former terrorist, was in the White House. Why did you think the US end up lifting the sanctions? In my opinion, I believe the Saudis behind closed doors sort of talked to the Americans and said, here is what we want you to do. We would like you to remove sanctions on Syria. Why? Because MBS will be looking at this again as a shift. So shifting the, the, the dial in the region, which means what? That could give the, the Saudis the, the, the appearance as the one who are influencing the Middle East. You look at, at the Palestine issue, Lebanon, of course, and Syria. But for Lebanon and Palestine, Saudis are not able to do anything because they can't. You know, tell me, when was the last time any Saudi official come forward and said, you know what, what Israel is doing to the defenseless civilians is wrong? And then you ask the key question, where is the duty of a Muslim towards another Muslim? You know, the Palestinians are Muslims, right? So what happened to that? So, and this is where you realize there are other articles coming out of Washington right here that pushing into the other direction. For example, the Washington Post wrote an article, I'm going to share the link with you, that is starts with this: MBS comes to Washington, regrettably. Very, very, very, very measured and heavy word. So the US gains nothing by legitimizing the Crown Prince repressions. That's what they argue. So I'm going to put the link for you in the chat box. You can read it later on should you decide to do so. And this is again where you have to understand what does dynamics mean. Visiting doesn't mean it's coming from a position of strength. No, is the other way around. Liking this video so far? Don't just be a watcher. Go ahead and hit the like, share, and subscribe button. And don't forget to tap the bell so you will not miss any of my videos or live streams. This way, you will be supporting a channel that stands for the truth and objective reporting. The choice is yours. Thanks for your support. All right, so I find myself as one once again who is versed into this, uh, uh, uh, uh, country, wrote extensively on it. I find it very ironic to why the Saudis stayed quiet about the genocide, uh, uh, uh, uh, committed by Israel, uh, with the support of the US, because it's legitimate questions. We can't be cherry-picking the information or the questions or the wording just to fit certain narratives. And this is once again what I'm saying to you, my, my dear community, you have to be careful as to what you are listening to on YouTube. Pay close attention. So, so what does this silence, uh, say about Saudi Arabia's religious obligation to support fellow Muslims? Because it's common sense. That's what the Saudis have been preaching for the last 70 years. We are the leaders of the Muslim world. Says who? So, so the strategic values of all this moving forward, because the Saudis now are facing some sort of a genuine dilemma between its stated religious identity as the so-called custodian of the Islam holiest sites and its geopolitical realities and interests, to, to end of the spectrum that they are fighting each other. So the silence on Gaza does reflect a prioritization of the strategic alliances on part of the Saudis, particularly, particularly when it comes down to the US. And now normalization in relations with Israel through the Abraham Accords. So there are several factors, of course, we have to consider for this. First, you think about Saudi Arabia has competing security concerns, particularly regarding Iran's regional influence. Because if you are— and I wrote this in my Saudi book— if there is a war, for example, between Saudi Arabia and Iran, Iran will walk over Saudi Arabia in a matter of 2 weeks, be over, because Saudis can— don't have the capabilities Iran does. This is one of the several factors that explains this calculus on part of the Saudis. So, and this alignment with the US and Israel— this is not alignment just with the US, is with Israel also— serves this strategic interest. Number 2, as you think about the Crown Prince MBS himself, has been consolidating power Far beyond what you can imagine. As a matter of fact, if you know about the Saudi family stuff, they have about 2,000 princes. All of them get stipend from the oil and so forth, but all of them from different, uh, you know, if the mother from a certain tribes, it's a tribal mindset. So if someone like MBS come to the, uh, to the, uh, uh, front of the line and claim the throne, some others will not settle well with that. You all remember 1975, King Faisal. Who assassinated King Faisal? It was his nephew. So it's just a matter of time. Someone inside that royal family is going to strike at some point. So third one has to do with pragmatic reality that public criticism A public criticism of whom? Of the US or Israeli actions that can cause necessarily changing outcome, not only inside Saudi Arabia, but across the region. And this is again what this reveals, in my opinion. This silence suggests that for the Saudi leadership, geopolitical power and economic interest currently outweigh religious or pan-Islamic solidarity or organizing principles altogether. And by the way, let's be fair here, this isn't unique just to Saudi Arabia. Another word, we are not criticizing just Saudi Arabia. This is for a whole Muslim majority nations have the same choices or similar choices. Ask the Jordanians, ask Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, United Arab Emirates, Turkey, Egypt, so Morocco, so they all, so, and this particularly notable, it's notable in the case of Saudi Arabia. Why? Because of so-called its religious leadership, uh, or, or religious authority, which I disagree with that. I have no idea how they all of a sudden, they will assume religious authority over the Muslim world. Under whose order? Did he have a direct contact with God, however you perceive God to be? That to me just doesn't make any sense. So, so for them to be calling themselves the Muslim, the world, the leader of the Muslim world, I don't buy it. But again, that's my own opinion. Then you have the domestic tensions inside Saudi Arabia. Majority of the Saudis have no idea what the leaders have been doing with Israel behind closed doors. I'm gonna share something with you that is declassified or not classified during my time back then. It was a private visit by Netanyahu to Saudi Arabia. It's no different than having the presence of the US forces on the Saudi soil. This is what UBL, Osama bin Laden, back then was arguing about, the presence of the so-called infidels. So it is worth noting that this create now internal pressure within Saudi Arabia, still needs to maintain legitimacy with its own population and of course the broader Muslim world. Which is why the kingdom occasionally issues statements expressing concerns about the Palestinian civilians. They give a hoot about the Palestinians. They don't care. And once again, it's not just the Saudis, others as well. At the same time, when the Saudis do this, they are maintaining some sort of strategic alignment with Israel and the United States. Here is what I argued in my Saudi book, and I'm going to share, uh, if you allow me, an excerpt with you. To those who read the book, uh, uh, and I know some in the community got a copy of this book, so undoubtedly the future of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia depends greatly on the United States providing security for the monarchy. Saudi Arabia fully understands that its survival in a tough neighborhood that has no love for but only animosity towards. The kingdom depends greatly on its ability to keep peace with its neighbors. To navigate those dangerous waters, the Saudi government has to create an enemy, real or perceived, depending on the Al Saud's pick of the day, as part of its survival mechanisms. Yet the objective is to maintain the distraction of a society oblivious to and obscure from important societal, governmental, and economic information. The Saudi society is conditioned from cradle to grave to depend on the Saudi government to give it its daily bread in return for absolute loyalty and total obedience. That outcome contributes to a society that is unaware of the danger that lies ahead due to MBS' dictatorial governing style. Even worse is that the President of the United States, Mr. Trump, has neglected to mention the massive scale of unjustified arrests and disappearances of citizens resulting from the Saudi government's recent campaign. Moreover, how could President Donald Trump challenge Saudi Arabia when he insults Muslims and presides over deteriorating race relations within the United States? That is such a great paradox. At a time when humanity looks for justice and social peace, our longtime ally Saudi Arabia still detains some of the most prominent scholars thinkers, female activists, and moderate religious leaders. Their crime? They wanted to raise awareness among Saudis about the dangerous, ill-conceived policies of the current Saudi leadership. Straightforward. And this is why when I am thinking about, uh, uh, uh, where this is going, Don't fall for it. So I'm going to disclose to you now the Saudis dealing with Israel behind closed doors. So it's fascinating, you know, there is a much deeper and more complex that you can even imagine. Of course media is not going to tackle that, and of course will be— if they do, what will be the messaging or the message, the public message that is. So, so here is what's happening behind closed doors. Long-standing secret cooperation between Saudi Arabia and Israel, and that had clandestine cooperation dating back to the 1960s, coordinating on security issues and sharing intelligence with each other. By 2010, Saudi Arabia and Israeli officials were quietly meeting behind closed doors to discuss matters of common interest. This is the meeting I'm referring to that I was aware of when the prime minister made a secret trip to Israel— to, I'm sorry, to Saudi Arabia. Then you have the formal regional security structure, and this, based on recently leaked documents, revealed something quite significant. And this one is that Arab states, including Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Egypt, Jordan, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, have quietly expanded security cooperation with the Israeli military through the United States military, which described as regional security. This is what they give it the term, uh, regional security constructs. That's what I remember reading in one specific analysis. So, and the Saudis, by the way, have been sharing information or intelligence with Israel and other Arab partners on security issues, including political developments in some other countries. So these meetings were deliberately kept secret for a reason. So secret, so, so secret that in May 2024 was a security conference at an airbase in Qatar. Guidelines were told to the— the guidelines that was told to the participants is not to take any photograph or provide any media, uh, statement. That's the story right there. Then comes the, the negotiations of the deal of the century. And this has to do with the intensive efforts that are currently underway for a historical package that deal with containing US-Saudi defense agreements. So we're gonna have to scare them to sell more weapons. So we're looking at it right now, especially the framework that includes significant economic incentives and not just from the US, from the Israelis also. Israeli officials, estimated that immediate benefit upward of $45 billion with the two countries because they are negotiating some undisclosed deals as we speak. And of course, we can— you can talk about all this, but you cannot ignore the big elephant in the room. Who's the big elephant in the room? Is the Iran factor. The shared concern, even from the Saudis— don't fall for the Chinese were successful in brokering that deal. Will the Saudis honor it? I have my doubts, knowing what I know. The shared concern driving this cooperation is clear. Saudi Arabia considered normalizing relations with Israel due to due to mutual regional interest like containing Iran. And this is what the Saudis are saying, the legitimate challenge for that. It will create a challenge because this create now a stark contradiction for the Saudi leadership. Why? Because in 2023, it was a poll that showed 96% of the Saudi participants believe Arab nations should cut all ties with Israel, and only 16% of Saudis said Hamas should accept a permanent two-state solution. Yet the Crown Prince is moving towards exactly the opposite. So And what this says, what does, what is the message of this? This is again, the silence of the Saudis regarding what's going on in Gaza is a calculated decision. And this has to do with the alignments with the US and the support of Israel because the strategic alignment with the US, the normalization with Israel outweigh the public opinion. So, and this leads us to one key specific question: can the Saudis survive without the US security protection? What do you guys think? Can the Saudis survive? When I say Saudi, I'm referring to the monarchy. Survive without the US security concern? So let me see quickly in the chat, in the chat box, if you Happen. Oh, oh, uh, Hong Ruan, you say yes. Kurt, you say no. Uh, Salish, you say no. Seymour, you say no. Uh, Get Black With Me, you say no. Saleh, you see yumkin, perhaps. I'm sorry, Saleh, this, this one right here, right here, yumkin, meaning possible. So some, uh, Hongwan, uh, some of you say yes. I'm, uh, Mary, you say no. Francis Tango, you say no. It's, it's my answer is no, they can't, they can't. And once again, I'm— my response is based on facts that I know. They can't, they won't, because you're gonna have to think about one aspect here. And, you know, convincingly, convincingly, they can't. They can't depend on their own, meaning Saudis, which is precisely why Saudi Arabia is desperately seeking formal US security guarantees. So you think about the structural realities, and this pertains to Saudi Arabia's armed forces depend principally on American weaponry. That's all they are trained on. And as a matter of fact, even during their war against the Houthis in Yemen, they were asking the American pilots to fly the planes. And we're like, I don't think so. We didn't, by the way, but they were asking for it. I'm aware of it. So that's why they're depending on the American weaponry. And the Kingdom has received about 140 $1.2 billion in military assistance from the US since World War II, by the way. That's just over a long period. So however, this, the, this dependency has been now tested repeatedly and is exposed as unreliable. So, so again, certain, uh, certain, uh, think tanks who wants to push the agenda will have you believe that it was Iran that attacked the Saudi oil refineries in September 2000. It wasn't Iran, it was the Houthis and Ansarullah. So because— and the US missile, anti-missile systems failed to intercept them. I documented this and I even sent the article to the government because for me, when I write I have to get the approval of the US government. They never told me no. We give credit to where credit is due. Except for the Saudi book, there are two location— two, two places inside the book that if you read the book or see it, you see they are redacted. They— I went back and forth into a conversation with the government about why, uh, they said we're just too sensitive to whatever. So Anyway, that's all as far as the articles know. And in this article, I disclosed that no, no, no, no, no, the Patriot missile systems failed to intercept. It has nothing to do with Iran. So, and that's when back then, if you remember, because it was Trump, dismissed the need for the US retaliation. And here is what he said, it's, and I quote, wasn't an attack on us. End of quote. You see how he's playing the Saudis? Fear. You create fear. And that moment was a water— or watershed, rather. It was a watershed moment. So that's when it revealed, for example, that the security umbrella couldn't be taken for granted. Same thing Qatar found out. So So, and the whole reason for why the Saudis needed the US security is because, as simple as it is, it failed— meaning Saudi Arabia failed to— in its ability to transform itself into standalone military power capable of dealing with other countries or other eventualities. So that's— once again, I go back to that invasion of of the Saudis into Yemen in 2015 to combat Iranian-backed Houthis force ended in failure. I was shaking my head when MBS all of a sudden, we're gonna send the military. So, because the Houthis continued firing sort of hundreds of missiles and drones at the Saudi targets, including oil facilities. So if the Saudis couldn't even defeat the Houthis. And I'm not minimizing the strength of the Houthis. The US couldn't defeat the Houthis. What makes him— what makes us think that the Saudis can stand on their feet when it comes down to defending themselves? They can't. It's a fact, is a reality. So, so this is exactly what is going on. So then we have to think in terms of the multipolarity. Could be the Saudis are seeing the world has already shifted into a multipolar order. So rather than finding some sort of genuine alternative to US protection, Saudi Arabia is now attempting to hedge its bet by maintaining relationship with multiple powers. So whether it's going to work or not, because Saudis have pursued some sort of independent policies regarding the regional, even in economics or energy. Remember when they coordinated with the Russians regarding OPEC+ to maintain high oil prices? And you remember what's his name, the former President Biden, went to Saudis. And you remember the way in BS, the fist high, saying hi in fist. In comparison to the red carpet treatments for Xi Jinping, President Xi Jinping, that is. So, so, and that's why the Saudis were courting— that was some sort of a courtship towards the Chinese. So even though I didn't believe that the Saudis has it in them to go all the way in a strategic partnership with China, because they can't Saudi can't. Even Saudi Arabia, with all its wealth and all that, they still can't do nothing because we control the assets. If they step out of line, we'll freeze everything. That's, you know, they haven't think through this one moving forward. So, so the bottom line is that Saudi Arabia cannot credibly survive on its own as a regional power without the US security backing. Simple as that. The Israeli backing is behind the scenes, of course, in the intelligence matters. Because one thing for sure, there is no comparison between the Saudi military capabilities and that of Iran. There is no way. As I said, Iran will walk over Saudi Arabia in a matter of a week and a half to two weeks. In my, in my assessment. So, and now that Iran has upgraded its defense systems, the Saudis, that's why they move in also with this F-35. But we will control the kill switch anyway. So, and the other alternative is what the Saudis did with the Pakistanis. Remember the nuclear umbrella? Because after all, who, who funded the nuclear program in Pakistan? It was Saudi Arabia. It's not a secret, by the way, I'm just sharing it with you. So this is where I see this structural weakness that exists, why Saudi Arabia is willing to compromise on almost everything, including its public religious stance. Because it stated that the Palestinian solidarity What solidarity? You know, that's just, that's just bravado. It's a lie, basically. So there is no neutrality, by the way, because Saudis allow their airspace to be used by the Israelis. That applies to Jordanians. So, and this is why you have to put this in a perspective, especially from a security aspects of it. They wanted to lock— the Saudis wants to lock this formal commitments with the Americans. So despite the past frictions and all that stuff. And this leads me, because I'm getting closer to the end here, this leads me to talk about 9/11, because I told you I will address this one here. So will Saudi Arabia— and here is a question that we ought to ask. Will Saudi Arabia be ever held accountable for 9/11 as families urge Trump right now to press Saudis for accountability ahead of the, uh, with the Saudi being here? So this is an extraordinary— it's complicated. So, and that is why you have to think in terms of the difficult difficulty of this. Why? Because you have to think about geopolitical realities that exist. That's one of the reasons. So like we discussed earlier, I mentioned it earlier for you. So because you have the geopolitical interest and you have the Justin— the justice are directly colliding. So, so it is unlikely we will see anything, especially with Trump in office. However, the legal landscape, of course, has shifted in ways that makes it a live issue, hasn't been forgotten. That's what I mentioned about Judge Daniel's decision in August 2025. He's not letting that up. Why? Because the evidence has been presented. And here is one new evidence that has been disclosed. The lawsuits, of course, included evidence of the Saudi national. His name is Omar al-Bayoumi. So, and this is new evidence, by the way. And what happened with this, this fellow here? Omar al-Bayoumi was in the US in the summer of 1999. He was casing the Capitol. Wasn't New York, it was case in the capital. And at the time, this Omar al-Bayoumi had a student visa. So the 9/11 Commission never— they were never aware of this evidence, which is now part of the lawsuit against Saudi Arabia. So, so more broadly, the lawsuit in itself details now how elements of the Saudi government provided funding, logistical help, and ideological support to AQ and its operative inside the United States prior to the attack. So, and this where you see the political contradictions. This is where your, the question becomes very, very important. The 9/11, you know, 9/11 families, are urging, because while they are urging Trump to sort of, yeah, man, you need to demand accountability from the Saudis, Trump is simultaneously sort of playing both sides, welcoming the crown prince to Washington for talks on defense and trade, nuclear cooperation, and potential normalization with Israel without addressing the family's request. So this is where the families are making an explicit demand. Here is what stated, and I quote, the US-Saudi relations must be grounded in truth. Any new agreement with the kingdom must first acknowledge the ongoing litigation and the evidence of Saudi involvement in the 9/11 attacks, end of quote. I'm, I'm usually, I'm a positive guy, but for this case, I don't see it happening because the accountability seems unlikely. And once again, I am basing this on facts, my involvements throughout the years with the governments over there on behalf of the US government. The brutal reality or the harsh reality, if I'm gonna use the term, sadly for the families, is that Saudi strategic value to the US outweigh accountability for past actions, including murder or even for Jamal Khashoggi. So if elements of some of other governments were implicated in this attack on the United States, It is doubtful that sort of political leaders will now be entertaining the idea of giving them a security guarantee or a nuclear technology as being suggested. That's what I see. I just don't see because even Trump himself, if you remember, he did state it. Trump himself acknowledged Saudi connection to 9/11. This is when he stated, it wasn't the— and I quote— it wasn't the Iraqis, it was Saudi. Take a look at Saudi Arabia, open the documents, end of quote. Yet his administration is moving forward with the very deals the family is opposing. It, it tells you where things are. So what could happen? The civil lawsuit could eventually reach a judgment against the Saudi, potentially awarding damage or damages to the families. However, collecting damages from a foreign government is very difficult, and Saudi Arabia has invested heavily in lobbying here in the US to block legislation that would strengthen victims' legal standing. It's all about lobbying. So Saudi Arabia is actively fighting to block the ensuring justice for victims of the terrorism act, which is critical to the families to fight for accountability. So this is the And this is again the structural problem that I identified earlier. So suffice it, and I'm going to conclude with this sentence, you know, as harsh as it might sound, but it's reality. The family's moral case is compelling, but geopolitical necessities is proving stronger. That is the reality of it. It's unlikely that Trump will even raise the case with them. So anyway, that's all I have to cover for you. Uh, remember, I'm gonna be, uh, as I said, tomorrow the 19th, uh, I will have the, uh, the, uh, conversation with, uh, Professor Anna Melendog at 0900 hours. Also, I have the, uh, our live stream on the geopolitics and money. And on the 20th, I have, uh, the conversation with Professor Yanlian, and of course my conversation with Jayant Pahandari. And, uh, so I look forward to that. Uh, thank you very much for your support. For those— by the way, to those who were interested in, uh, let me just share the link with you for the, the books. If you want to get the copy of the Saudi book Uh, this is where you find it. This is part of the Buy Me a Coffee inside there where I have extra. It's like literally I put it for like $10 or something like that. Uh, think of it that way, just buying me coffee, but you get a copy of the electronic version of it. So, and, and, uh, if you have any question once you read it, just let me know and I'll be happy to answer it. As always, remember, geopolitics impacts your daily life in more ways than one. Till next time, bye-bye.