Syria and Saudi Arabia: Collaboration and Conflicts in the Oil Era (Library of International Relations)

The nature of the relationship between Syria and Saudi Arabia during the oil era poses many questions for the commentators and analysts of inter-Arab politics during this period. Why have these two states pursued mutually conflicting aims in almost every major regional or international foreign policy issue? Why, over the course of the past thirty years, have they often propagated contrasting ideological banners while both acting as though some form of an alignment existed between them? Here Sonoko Sunayama explores the apparent paradox behind this longstanding relationship and argues that what ultimately makes Saudis and Syrians so indispensable to each other is the perception and the historical appeal of 'shared identities', be they Arabism or Islam. "Syrian-Saudi relations have been a paradox in inter-Arab politics during the oil era. The two states pursued mutually conflicting aims in almost every major regional or international foreign policy issue and often propagated contrasting ideological banners over the past thirty years; yet both acted as though some form of an alignment existed between themselves. The most obvious evidence for the existence and endurance of this link is observed in the sizable financial transaction from Saudi Arabia to Syria, which came to form a lifeline for Syria's national economy. Besides the economic sphere, the two countries have consulted each other on major regional political and security issues, such as the Middle East peace process, the Lebanese civil war and Gulf security. The author explores the logic behind the paradoxical longevity of this cooperative relationship- despite the occasional tensions and conflicting interests- through an empirical study of the twelve-year period, which was marked by exceptionally abundant sources of disagreements between the two actors. That period is between the 1978 Egyptian-Israeli Camp David Accords and the 1990 Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. The study highlights that this ultimate indispensability of each other in Syrian-Saudi relations is a condition created, among other factors, by the historical appeal of 'shared identities', be they Arabism or Islam. Through the examination of the Syrian-Saudi case, the author argues that, the regulatory, or normative, function of 'shared identities' in foreign policy are informed by realist interests as well as shape and constrain those interests at the same time. In other words, identities and their ensuing norms and values should not be seen as exterior to state interests, but instead, the two are mutually constitutive factors."--Bloomsbury Publishing Contents......Page 6 Preface and Acknowledgements......Page 8 Introduction......Page 10 1. Syrian-Saudi Relations before Camp David: Historical background (1946-1978)......Page 23 2. Drawing the Fault Lines: The Camp David agreement and its aftermath (September 1978 - October 1980)......Page 58 3. Heading Opposing Camps: The primacy of Saudi Arabia (October 1980 - September 1982)......Page 98 4. The Beginning of the End of 'the Saudi Era' (October 1982 - March 1984)......Page 148 5. Syria's Veto Power vs. Saudi Quest for Arab Consensus: With reference to the Gulf War (April 1984 - August 1990)......Page 184 Conclusion......Page 224 Notes......Page 233 Bibliography......Page 250 Index......Page 268 Syrian-Saudi relations have been a paradox in inter-Arab politics during the oil era. Commentators and analysts have questioned why the two states pursued mutually conflicting aims in almost every major regional or international foreign policy issue and often propagated contrasting ideological banners over the past thirty years; while both acting as though some form of an alignment existed between them? Here, Sonoko Sunayama explores the logic behind the paradoxical longevity of this cooperative relationship and argues that what ultimately makes Saudis and Syrians so indispensable to each other is the perception and the historical appeal of'shared identities', be they Arabism or Islam. Sonoko Sunayama. Includes Bibliographical References (p. [241]-258) And Index.