Alwaght – US president Barak Obama's presence in Saudi In a show of solidarity with Al Saud Monarchy reemphasized Washington's willingness to put its national interest's priorities ahead of human rights chants.
Obama led a parade of American dignitaries to the Wahhabi desert kingdom Tuesday to pay respects after King Abdullah's death and take measure of the new monarch .
Indeed, the key role the top oil exporter Saudi regime plays in U.S. foreign policy made American president to cut his trip to India to extend his condolence to Saudi monarchy.
Hours before arriving in Riyadh, Obama, hypocritically, 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 women's driving is banned and they are not allowed to vote, if any election .
Obama, like his recent predecessors, defended his willingness to forge close ties with the kingdom despite its array of human rights issues .
Democrat Obama accompanied by First lady, visited Saudi during a four-hour visit to Riyadh. A country that received the lowest possible marks for civil and political freedoms in the annual Freedom House rankings in 2014; a country that there is no elections, no parties, no parliament, no dissent; a country that no legal code exists, leaving it to individual judges to set the punishment for a crime; a country that women are not permitted to leave the house, make a purchase, sign any legal document – in fact perform almost any official action, from agreeing to surgery, to signing up to a class – without the consent of a guardian; a country that US regards it as the biggest source of Sunni terrorism funding in the world.
First lady Michelle Obama dressed conservatively in black pants and a long jacket, but 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 Obama, while others simply nodded to her as they passed by .
Earlier Tuesday, Obama told an audience of young people in New Delhi that every woman should "be safe and be treated with the respect and dignity that she deserves ."
The Obama's schedule shift highlighted the degree to which the West Asia still has sway over Obama, even as he seeks to refocus Washington's foreign policy on places like India and the Asia-Pacific .
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 West Asia .
CIA Director John Brennan and Gen. Lloyd Austin, commander of US Central Command, which overseas military activity in the West Asia , 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 .
Obama's tenure has been marked by tensions with the royal family. Abdullah was frustrated with Obama's cautious approach to the Syrian crisis and frequently pressed for the US to send more high-powered weaponry to the terrorists.
