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The Saudi Leadership Crisis

US Secretary of State John Kerry will try to persuade the kingdom to be part of the solution to the crisis in Syria.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry (L) is greeted by Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal upon arrival in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia June 25, 2013. Kerry is in Saudi Arabia for a day visit and will continue on to Kuwait, as he returns to his Middle East tour after stopping in India. REUTERS/Jacquelyn Martin/Pool (SAUDI ARABIA - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX11038

On his visit to Riyadh, John Kerry, the US secretary of state, will encounter a strategic partner that has become too bewildered by the changing Arab world.

A chorus of important princely Saudi voices have already been heard before the visit, pointing to disappointment amounting to anger over the failure of the United States to act in Syria and promising serious shifts in the Saudi-US partnership. The two Al-Faisal brothers, Saud and Turki, in addition to Bandar bin Sultan, have left no doubt that Saudi Arabia is distressed by recent US policies vis-à-vis Syria and Iran.

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