Why the U.S. and Saudi Arabia Are Suddenly Involved in a Tense Geopolitical Drama

Anxiety runs through the palaces of Saudi Arabia, where the expectation of permanent United States support has declined. Signs of this decline have been evident for the past few years. High on the list is the West’s nuclear deal with Iran. Saudi Arabia has historically wanted to strangle Iran, so anything less than that is seen as a defeat.

The U.S. is putting its leverage on the table: A bill in the U.S. Congress to hold the Saudis liable for 9/11. It could mean large payments from Saudi holdings to compensate the victims of the attack. It might also mean that the 28 redacted pages of the Joint Congressional Inquiry on 9/11 could be released. What lies behind the black marks is not so hard to imagine—and if it were made public, it would introduce a shift in America's historical memory about a very painful episode, no small thing. Saudi Arabia will come off poorly if these are in the public domain. An emboldened Iran, a disparaged Saudi Arabia: this is not the geopolitical scenario King Salman would like to see. He had hoped for the opposite....
http://www.alternet.org/world/why-us-and-saudi-arabia-are-suddenly-involved-tense-geopolitical-drama