Where Does the Iran Deal Leave Saudi Arabia?

From Politico.com

When Saudi Arabia’s long-serving foreign minister, Prince Saud al-Faisal, died late last week, an era of quiet Saudi foreign policy may have passed with him. The kingdom’s envoy for 40 years, Prince Saud believed Saudi influence was best wielded discreetly—he was always there, working behind the scenes.

Today, however, the mute button is off. Backed by a new generation of young Saudis, the kingdom has lately taken a more aggressive approach to foreign policy—not mincing words, not afraid to undertake its own military adventures and not waiting for U.S. approval. It’s an impulse that’s expected to intensify in the wake of the nuclear deal reached Tuesday between Saudi Arabia’s strongest ally, the United States, and its fiercest regional rival, Iran. Riyadh is likely to welcome the agreement cautiously (as it did a framework agreement in April)—but its actions may well indicate the opposite.

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