War Economy Or Peace Economy
As 2019 approaching its end, it is reported that Saudi Arabia’s economy is in a critical condition. War against Yemen, instead of having profits for Saudis, has paved the ground for content of U.S. President Donald Trump and his cabinet in the White House.
IRAN NEWS POLITICAL DESK
Some reports coming from warning Western or local newspapers and even from confidential bulletins of Saudi Arabia indicate that Saudis have scraped the bottom of the barrel, and in the meetings of military officials and political experts of the country they admit that it is better to put an end to war in Yemen in an honorable way in order that Iran could not exploit it because the sum which they pay to the U.S. is whopping amount.
In a condition that almost half of Saudi Arabia’s oil revenues has been disrupted and even it is possible Yemeni forces to repeat their attacks on Saudi Arabia’s oil installations, peace economy in the country faces challenges let alone a war economy.
Regarding this issue, American magazine Foreign Policy wrote that the cost for two military satellites, supporting Saudi war against Yemen, hit $1.8b in the first half of the year and the cost for reconnaissance aircraft, AWACS, for supporting Saudis is $250,000 per hour, making $1.1b per year.
Meanwhile British newspaper The Times also wrote on the issue that Yemen war would cost Saudi Arabia around $200m per day, namely, $72b in year and $216b in three years. Foreign Policy has estimated the cost to be $725b in the first half of the year, adding that the expense includes all Saudi Arabia’s military contracts with countries which support the war.
American newspaper Washington Post also in a report said that the human toll of Saudis in the southern regions has been around 2,500 soldiers plus 60 officers until one year ago. Meanwhile 650 tanks and hundreds of armored personnel carriers of Saudi forces have been destroyed in regions of Jizan, Najran and Asir in Yemen.
Regarding this heavy volume of cost which has been inflicted on Saudi’s economy, a question still is in mind of Saudi Arabia’s people and its supporting politicians which worries them whether economic structure and budget of the country would be able to endure heavier volume of war cost.
According to the Western media reports, participating fighter jets in the war against Yemen cost Saudis $230m per month. Sustaining $1,000b loss during Yemeni forces’ attacks on Aramco oil installations which delayed listing of the company in New York Stock market as well as whopping sum of money for repairing the refinery have raised this question which sane mind persuades Saudi Arabia to continue the war against Yemen and encourages the country to endure political burden of humiliating act of massacring Arabs by Arabs and its unassessable costs.
Saudi people, both Sunnis and Shiites, and even Wahhabis have no willing to continue war and fratricide but the only thing is that they do not express their willing. This is because they fear Iran exploit it and Yemenis win the war which further drives them towards Iran.
In Western media which are supporting Saudis we read that some of Wahhabi Sheikhs are facing with conversion of their children into Shia either in Saudi Arabia or abroad.
Saudi Prince Bin Salman is now in a dilemma between war economy or peace economy and he is totally confused. In this condition, the ground is ready for Iran to open its arms to hug Saudis for restoring ties and possibility of mediation is now more than ever.
Saudi Arabia should not feel that ending the war will lead to its humiliation in the region, and unlike them, Yemenis should not celebrate in a way to show that they have won in an uneven war against Saudi Arabia and culture of resistance has defeated Saudis. This idea and plan, that Saudis’ inclination towards ending the war without feeling humiliation and at the same time without propagation from Iran for creating joy for victory of the resistance, is a complicated and sensitive issue.
It is a must and necessity for our Foreign Ministry to devise a matured plan which can ultimately put an end to the bloodshed in Yemen even to deaths of Saudi people, and it should take the initiative in its hand to show Islamic Iran’s paternal behavior to the Muslim nations. We in Iran have been always supporting peace and stability in the region. And now it is time to pick the fruit of this peace and stability through the impasse that Saudis have got stuck in its economy, and we hope prudence comes to the aid of us and nations.
By: Hamid Reza Naghashian
