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Obama meets House of Saud--Careful not to talk about gays
by Joseph Earnest March 28, 2014
Newscast Media WASHINGTON—US President Barack Obama is in Saudi Arabia visiting King Abdullah bin Adulazziz, and it is interesting that he has steered away from the topic of homosexuals being put to death publicly if caught in Saudi Arabia.
As the absolute monarch, the king's word is the law and is final, therefore it cannot be reversed.
While Obama shakes his fist and makes threatening gestures to countries with lesser laws that deal with homosexuals, the leader of the free world takes a stance of submission when dealing with the House of Saud, and will dare not mention that controversial subject while he is within or without the kingdom.
The U.S. media is also very careful and tiptoes around this subject, making sure that none of the journalists or reporters say anything that might offend the Saudis.
As for the so-called gay rights and human rights activists, why are they all of a sudden silent as Obama makes his Saudi visit?
Where are all the Camerons, the Swedish officials, the Ban Ki-moons and the Kerrys who like to run around making noise about their concern for gay rights? Has the LGBT community taken the weekend off? How convenient.
Why are the bullies so afraid to protest against the Saudis like they did when countries like Russia, Nigeria and Uganda passed anti-homosexual laws? Hypocrites!
Meanwhile, in his meetings with King Abdullah in Riyadh, President Obama reiterated the significance the United States places on its strong relationship with Saudi Arabia, which has endured for over 80 years.
The United States and Saudi Arabia are working together to address a number of critical bilateral and regional issues, including resolving the crisis in Syria, preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, counterterrorism efforts to combat extremism, and supporting negotiations to achieve Middle East peace.
Below are some highlights of US-Saudi relations:
Counterterrorism: Saudi Arabia has been a strong U.S. counterterrorism (CT) partner, particularly on disrupting Al Qaeda (AQ) elements. The US works closely with Saudi authorities on a range of CT issues, including countering terrorist financing (CTF), and the United States and Saudi Arabia work together to help various nations in the region counter shared terrorist threats.
Bilateral Trade and Investment: U.S. exports to Saudi Arabia exceeded $35 billion in 2013, including direct exports of $19 billion (a 76 percent increase since 2009) and roughly $2 billion in service exports (Engineering, Procurement, and Construction; Design; Financial; and Legal). Indirect exports and other goods and services were valued at an additional $15 billion.
Energy Cooperation: As U.S. oil and gas production increases, and as Saudi Arabia works to diversify its energy mix and improve energy efficiency, the longstanding bilateral cooperation on energy issues is getting stronger, not just on conventional energy market issues, but also energy efficiency, renewable and other alternative energy sources, and science and technology research. For example, Saudi Arabia is working with the Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory on measuring its solar energy resources.
Educational Programs: There are more Saudi students in the United States now than ever before, with approximately 80,000 Saudi students in the United States representing Saudi Arabia's future political, business, and social leadership.
Health Cooperation Programs: The United States and Saudi Arabia have been close partners in health cooperation for over three decades. Currently, a number of U.S. scientists have collaborative National Institutes of Health grants with Saudi partners. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has a long history with the Saudi Ministry of Health and Saudi Arabian National Guard Health Affairs; both have hosted CDC experts for one to two year stints and work with the CDC on infectious disease surveillance during the yearly Hajj pilgrimage. Add Comments>>
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