On 3 August 1990, the morning after Iraq invaded Kuwait, the Saudi Arabian government was more than a bit jittery, fearing that the Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein would make Riyadh his next target. The Saudis had been some of the bigger buyers of American and British arms, but they found that they had a big problem.
And that was the fact that all the princes who were pilots of F-16 jets, considered one of the glamour jobs, had gone missing. Empty jets were of no use. How would the Saudis defend their country if Baghdad decided to march into the country’s Eastern Region? If Hussein decided to do so, he would be in control of a sizeable portion of the world’s oil resources and many countries would be royally screwed.
Then the Americans came calling, ready with doctored satellite imagery to scare the hell out of King Fahd and his colleagues. Finally, the king gave in to Dick Cheney’s arguments and asked the Americans to come into Saudi Arabia to defend the country.
The situation appears to be repeating itself after missiles hit Saudi Arabian oil installations two weeks ago, though this time the Americans seem reluctant to get into a fight with Iran, which has been blamed for the attack.
There is not a shred of proof to implicate Teheran apart from American and Saudi claims but then when has the Western press ever needed anything more than claims to point the finger at Iran?
The Saudis have been using foreign labour for a long time to do all the work in the country, right from cleaning the toilets to managing their companies. And they would, no doubt, be looking to the Americans to fight Iran too if it becomes necessary.
The fact is, the Saudis have more than enough military equipment to protect their country. But they are either incompetent to the point where they are unable to use it as it should be used. Or else, they are lazy and want others to do the work for them. After all, these are royals, right?
The Americans made a profit on the war which was waged in 1991 to eject Iraq from Kuwait; they spent US$51 billion and raked in US$60 billion, with contributions being made by numerous countries, all worried that oil prices would put their economies into negative territory.
But Iran will not be a pushover as Iraq was. And there is unlikely to be any kind of coalition like the one assembled in 1990. Nobody has the appetite for a fight. The world economy is looking decidedly shaky. And after the US pulled out of a deal to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons, countries in Europe are not exactly enthusiastic about joining the Americans in any more crazy adventures.