Arrow-right Camera
The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Obama, first lady visit Saudi Arabia

First lady Michelle Obama and President Barack Obama stand in a receiving line in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on Tuesday. (Associated Press)
Julie Pace Associated Press

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – In a show of solidarity with Saudi Arabia, President Barack Obama led a parade of American dignitaries to the ultraconservative desert kingdom Tuesday to pay respects after King Abdullah’s death.

Obama’s presence here underscored the key role Saudi Arabia plays in U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East and highlighted Washington’s willingness to put national security priorities ahead of concerns about human rights issues. Hours before arriving in Riyadh, Obama spoke at length about the importance of women’s rights during an address in India, setting up a jarring contrast with his warm embrace of Saudi Arabia, a country where there are strict limits on women’s freedom.

Obama, like his recent predecessors, defended his willingness to forge close ties with the kingdom despite its array of human rights issues.

“Sometimes we need to balance our need to speak to them about human rights issues with immediate concerns we have in terms of counterterrorism or dealing with regional stability,” Obama said in an interview with CNN.

First lady Michelle Obama accompanied the president during his four-hour visit to Riyadh. She dressed conservatively in black pants and a long jacket, but she did not cover her head, which is often standard for Western women visiting the kingdom but forbidden for Saudi women. Some members of the all-male Saudi delegation shook her hand as they greeted the Obamas, while others simply nodded to her as they passed by.

A senior administration official said Obama raised the issue of human rights broadly in his discussions with the king, but did not tackle specific matters, including the case of a Saudi blogger who was convicted of insulting Islam and sentenced to 10 years in prison and 1,000 lashes.

Obama was joined in Riyadh by Secretary of State John Kerry, along with Condoleezza Rice and James Baker, who led the State Department under Republican presidents. Former White House national security advisers Brent Scowcroft, Sandy Berger and Stephen Hadley also made the trip, as did Sen. John McCain, the Arizona Republican who is a frequent critic of Obama’s foreign policy in the Middle East.

CIA Director John Brennan and Gen. Lloyd Austin, commander of U.S. Central Command, which overseas military activity in the Middle East, joined the delegation.

Saudi Arabia’s new monarch, King Salman bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud, greeted Obama at the steps of Air Force One after it landed in Riyadh. The two men had met previously, but Tuesday’s meetings marked their most substantive discussions.

Following a lavish dinner of grilled meats and Arabic desserts at the king’s opulent personal palace, Obama and Salman spent just over an hour discussing a range of regional issues. Among them: the campaign against the Islamic State group, the Syrian civil war and the political chaos in Yemen. The Obama administration official said they also discussed Iran, both in the context of the U.S.-led nuclear negotiations and what Washington and Riyadh see as the Islamic republic’s destabilizing activities in the region.

The kingdom is among a handful of nations that has joined the U.S. in launching airstrikes against Islamic State militants in Syria. And the two countries have coordinated closely on counterterrorism operations, even after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, which were executed by a group of men that included many with Saudi ties.