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You apply pressure on companies taking investment from the Saudis collectively. That's just rephrasing it... how do you apply pressure? Everyone needs oil, man
by QAPereo 9y ago
You apply pressure on companies taking investment from the Saudis collectively.
That's just rephrasing it... how do you apply pressure? Everyone needs oil, many don't care about these issues, so how do we make them toe a line? What pressure do we exert? How much political capital do we burn without a hope of return?
At the end of the day though, you say "blood money" as though both sides aren't drenched in it. Moreover, whoever the Saudis are killing, it's with our weapons systems. They're newcomers to a game that the US has been playing for centuries, and Europe much longer. They're something between our rogue asset in the region, and our abusive soon-to-be-ex-spouse. Everyone sees it coming, especially the Saudis who are going so far as to clean house and contemplate an Aramco IPO to avoid being reclaimed by the desert.
- toomuchtodo 9y agoDiplomacy is the art of saying “good dog” until you make it to the rock. We’re not to the rock yet. I’d agree with your sentiment that they’re too much of an ally for anything meaningful to be done about their investments, but the winds shift quickly.