Page 121 - Time Magazine-November 05, 2018

TheView Ideas

THE RISK REPORT
Saudis try to go back to business as
SHORT
READS usual, as Khashoggi storm rages
▶ Highlights By Ian Bremmer
from stories on
time.com/ideas
The SaudiS may and JPMorgan—each of which has in-
A better form have finally admitted vestments and jobs riding on the king-
of nationalism to the “accidental” dom’s success—chose to dispatch junior
killing of journalist rather than senior representatives to
“A biblically Jamal Khashoggi, but signal unease with the Khashoggi story
rooted American they still don’t have while acknowledging that business must
nationalism—one that a coherent explana- continue.
recognizes the nation
as a diversity of tribes tion that exonerates Crown Prince (and There are good reasons for both
bound together by a King in waiting) Mohammed bin Salman, politicians and businesses to distance
common heritage and known widely as MBS. Few believe themselves from or censure Riyadh in
mutual loyalty—is Khashoggi could have been killed with- response to Khashoggi’s killing. If govern-
sorely lacking from out his order. ments don’t impose a significant price on
American public
debate,” writes The The response from political leaders cold-blooded political murder, they’re
Virtue of Nationalism is stiffening. Turkey’s President Recep showing MBS, and other autocrats, that
author Yoram Hazony. Tayyip Erdogan has been it’s open season for the kill-
He laments how racists noisily picking holes in the ing of critics, even on foreign
have adopted the term. The mooted
Saudi accounts of the killing. transform- soil. And shareholders are
German Chancellor Angela ation of best served when company
Merkel has halted arms trade decisionmakers keep their
Ending polio with the Saudis, while Canada Saudi distance from autocrats who
is also considering a freeze. Arabia from fail to respect international
While new wild petrostate
poliovirus cases have While U.S. President Donald rules in ways that dominate
dropped from 1,000 Trump appears to be looking to cutting- global headlines.
a day in 1988 to for a way to condemn the kill- edge modern This is not to say for-
20 so far this year, ing without blaming MBS or economy eign investors won’t con-
“one child is too jeopardizing U.S. arms sales tinue doing business with
many,” writes Rotary by 2030 has
International president to the kingdom, lawmakers of lost critical the kingdom—they certainly
Barry Rassin and World both parties have demanded momentum will. A lot of companies in the
Health Organization Saudi answers and a tough U.S. and elsewhere have al-
director-general U.S. response. ready reaped benefits from
Tedros Adhanom Companies and investors, however, Saudi Arabia; dollars from the country’s
Ghebreyesus. They
warn that slowing have been more cautious and nuanced in $250 billion Public Investment Fund
elimination now could how they respond. Especially interesting have helped grow tech startups like Uber,
lead to a resurgence. has been their approach to MBS’s Future WeWork and Slack. But the reputational
Investment Initiative, a high-profile gath- risks that had been temporarily swept
ering in Riyadh for those hoping to estab- under the rug with the political rise of
Accepting the lish a commercial foothold in the modern- a “reformer” like MBS are now back to
tired, the poor izing Saudi kingdom. Khashoggi’s killing the forefront. And the mooted trans-
cast a chill over the summit and sent formation of Saudi Arabia from petro-
U.S. Representative reputation-conscious executives scram- state to cutting-edge modern economy
Joe Kennedy III bling for cover. Media companies were by 2030—always a long shot, even in
argues that fearing among the first to desert the event, per- the best circumstances—has lost critical
immigrants, while
common in U.S. haps fearful of being seen to cozy up to a momentum.
history, is misguided. regime that had silenced one of their own. The attendance list at this year’s inves-
“Immigration has been But by the time the summit began on tor summit will surely say a lot about how
an affirmation of our Oct. 23, executives and investors were Saudi Arabia is weathering the Khashoggi
success, not a threat taking a more pragmatic approach. The storm. But far more important for Mo-
to it,” he writes in an
adapted introduction head of Russia’s sovereign wealth fund hammed bin Salman, and his country’s
to his great-uncle JFK’s led a sizable contingent to the event to sizable ambitions, will be the success of
1964 book, Nation of ensure that losses for those sniffy about the summit next year, and the year after
Immigrants. human rights would be Moscow’s gain. that. Time will tell if business in Saudi
Financial institutions like Citigroup Arabia can return to usual. 
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