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https://www.ft.com/content/6c1d473a-1ba9-11e8-aaca-4574d7dabfb6
Financial Times Sign In Saudi Arabia Add to myFT Saudi Arabia overhauls top brass to hone military edge Command of land and air forces changes in third year of faltering progress in Yemen Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman says military capability needs to match levels of defence spending [emoji767] AP Share on Twitter (opens new window) Share on Facebook (opens new window) Share on LinkedIn (opens new window) Share on Whatsapp (opens new window) Save Save to myFT Ahmed Al Omran in Riyadh 11 MINUTES AGO 2 Saudi Arabia has replaced top military officers and senior officials in several ministries in the latest shake-up intended to inject fresh blood into the armed forces and government. King Salman appointed First Lieutenant General Fayyad bin Hamed al-Ruwayli as chief of staff and named new commanders for the land and air forces as part of a plan to revamp the defence ministry. The changes, announced in decrees on Monday, come as Saudi Arabia has become bogged down in Yemen’s three-year civil war in which it backs an exiled government against Houthi rebels allied to Iran. ADVERTISING inRead invented by Teads No other details were given about the military overhaul but Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, defence minister since January 2015, has in the past openly talked about the need to improve the performance of the armed forces to match the expensive hardware purchased by the kingdom. “It is unacceptable that we are the world’s third or fourth biggest country in military spending but our army is ranked in the twenties [ability]. There is a problem,” the powerful heir-apparent said in a television interview two years ago. Recommended Opinion: Tech-savvy generation of Muslim women driving global growth Russia and Saudi Arabia put aside differences to forge energy pact Saudi Arabia’s ‘normalisation’ baffles global business Saudi Arabia is the Middle East’s biggest spender on defence and is taking an increasingly assertive foreign policy stance in its efforts to counter Iran’s role in the region. Riyadh launched a coalition in March 2015 to intervene in the Yemeni conflict but has been heavily criticised for large numbers of civilian deaths while making little headway against the Houthi, who control northern parts of Yemen. Gen Ruwayli, a US-trained fighter pilot and former commander of the Royal Saudi Air Force, replaced General Abdulrahman bin Saleh al-Bunyan, who was forced into retirement. Michael Stephens, a research fellow at the Royal United Services Institute, said the military shake-up would enable Prince Mohammed to convince western allies that he is trying to improve conditions in Yemen as he prepares to visit London, Paris and Washington next month. The changes can also seen as part of the young royal’s efforts to consolidate power. “Reform in this instance I believe is more targeted,” Mr Stephens said. “It’s removing a layer of officialdom that does not have the trust of Prince Mohammed, and replacing them with officials, and bureaucrats who exhibit more loyalty to him.” Theodore Karasik, a senior adviser at the Gulf States Analytics consultancy, said the revamp was also driven by a need to enhance military efficiency. “This change is not so much about how the war is being run but how these officials were running their departments. The Yemen campaign may be a secondary issue to the restructuring,” he said. “There is clearly a need for better and sharper lessons learned from operations in Yemen.” In another decree, King Salman named Tamader al-Rammah as deputy labour minister for social affairs, making her the highest-ranking female official in the country. The appointment will be interpreted as another sign that Prince Mohammed is pushing ahead with his pledge to create a more tolerant society and modernise the conservative kingdom. Several new deputy ministers were also appointed at the economy and interior ministries, as well as new mayors for Riyadh, the capital, and Mecca, the religious centre. Ahmed Kattan, ambassador to Egypt, was promoted to a newly created position of state minister for African affairs as the kingdom aims to bolster its influence in that continent. Prince Bader bin Sultan was appointed governor of the northern al-Jouf region, and several new deputy governors were named, including Prince Turki bin Talal, brother of Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, the billionaire released last month after being detained in the anti-corruption drive. The new appointments continue a theme that Prince Mohammed started more than two years ago of tapping younger talent, especially from the private sector, to take senior positions.
Financial Times Sign In Saudi Arabia Add to myFT Saudi Arabia overhauls top brass to hone military edge Command of land and air forces changes in third year of faltering progress in Yemen Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman says military capability needs to match levels of defence spending [emoji767] AP Share on Twitter (opens new window) Share on Facebook (opens new window) Share on LinkedIn (opens new window) Share on Whatsapp (opens new window) Save Save to myFT Ahmed Al Omran in Riyadh 11 MINUTES AGO 2 Saudi Arabia has replaced top military officers and senior officials in several ministries in the latest shake-up intended to inject fresh blood into the armed forces and government. King Salman appointed First Lieutenant General Fayyad bin Hamed al-Ruwayli as chief of staff and named new commanders for the land and air forces as part of a plan to revamp the defence ministry. The changes, announced in decrees on Monday, come as Saudi Arabia has become bogged down in Yemen’s three-year civil war in which it backs an exiled government against Houthi rebels allied to Iran. ADVERTISING inRead invented by Teads No other details were given about the military overhaul but Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, defence minister since January 2015, has in the past openly talked about the need to improve the performance of the armed forces to match the expensive hardware purchased by the kingdom. “It is unacceptable that we are the world’s third or fourth biggest country in military spending but our army is ranked in the twenties [ability]. There is a problem,” the powerful heir-apparent said in a television interview two years ago. Recommended Opinion: Tech-savvy generation of Muslim women driving global growth Russia and Saudi Arabia put aside differences to forge energy pact Saudi Arabia’s ‘normalisation’ baffles global business Saudi Arabia is the Middle East’s biggest spender on defence and is taking an increasingly assertive foreign policy stance in its efforts to counter Iran’s role in the region. Riyadh launched a coalition in March 2015 to intervene in the Yemeni conflict but has been heavily criticised for large numbers of civilian deaths while making little headway against the Houthi, who control northern parts of Yemen. Gen Ruwayli, a US-trained fighter pilot and former commander of the Royal Saudi Air Force, replaced General Abdulrahman bin Saleh al-Bunyan, who was forced into retirement. Michael Stephens, a research fellow at the Royal United Services Institute, said the military shake-up would enable Prince Mohammed to convince western allies that he is trying to improve conditions in Yemen as he prepares to visit London, Paris and Washington next month. The changes can also seen as part of the young royal’s efforts to consolidate power. “Reform in this instance I believe is more targeted,” Mr Stephens said. “It’s removing a layer of officialdom that does not have the trust of Prince Mohammed, and replacing them with officials, and bureaucrats who exhibit more loyalty to him.” Theodore Karasik, a senior adviser at the Gulf States Analytics consultancy, said the revamp was also driven by a need to enhance military efficiency. “This change is not so much about how the war is being run but how these officials were running their departments. The Yemen campaign may be a secondary issue to the restructuring,” he said. “There is clearly a need for better and sharper lessons learned from operations in Yemen.” In another decree, King Salman named Tamader al-Rammah as deputy labour minister for social affairs, making her the highest-ranking female official in the country. The appointment will be interpreted as another sign that Prince Mohammed is pushing ahead with his pledge to create a more tolerant society and modernise the conservative kingdom. Several new deputy ministers were also appointed at the economy and interior ministries, as well as new mayors for Riyadh, the capital, and Mecca, the religious centre. Ahmed Kattan, ambassador to Egypt, was promoted to a newly created position of state minister for African affairs as the kingdom aims to bolster its influence in that continent. Prince Bader bin Sultan was appointed governor of the northern al-Jouf region, and several new deputy governors were named, including Prince Turki bin Talal, brother of Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, the billionaire released last month after being detained in the anti-corruption drive. The new appointments continue a theme that Prince Mohammed started more than two years ago of tapping younger talent, especially from the private sector, to take senior positions.
