[Apartment] "We Used to Be North Korea" Saudi Arabia Transformed by Bin Salman (AlphaGo Part 1)

Shin Ji-eun: We usually talk about stocks and real estate on our show, but today, let's expand our worldview a bit and discuss a different topic. Let me first introduce today's special guest, Korean journalist Sina Alphago from Turkey. Hello.

Alphago: Hello.

Q. Evaluation of Crown Prince Bin Salman

Shin Ji-eun: We'll start in earnest from part one. You've talked a lot about Saudi Arabia. When I think of Saudi Arabia, oil money comes to mind, but recently Crown Prince Bin Salman has been visiting Korea and has become quite famous here. From my perspective, he's just a wealthy young man, but he's also a prince, and on the other hand, I've heard he's somewhat 'ruthless.' How do you evaluate him? Have you met him personally?

Alphago: I've met Kuwaiti princes, but not Saudi princes yet. To properly evaluate a person, you usually need about 20 years after their death. So, I think we can't properly evaluate Muhammad Bin Salman right now because he's still alive and his regime hasn't ended. But first, we need to look at his profile.

Shin Ji-eun: His profile?

Alphago: We need to understand how he came to that position. It wasn't handed to him easily; there were events before that. First, you need to know his father, Salman Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud. (Currently the king) Salman was the governor of Riyadh at the time. It sounds like a great resume, but among Saudi princes who could become king, it wasn't a very high position.

Shin Ji-eun: So, from a prince's perspective, it wasn't a very good position.

Alphago: Yes, from a prince's perspective. In such cases, being the second wife is advantageous rather than the first wife. Because children from the first wife think, 'Our father will never become king,' so they try to find their own path. But as Abdulaziz aged and his older brothers passed away one by one, the possibility of becoming king started to emerge. So, he educated his children extensively, since they might become kings.

Shin Ji-eun: Because they could become princes.

Alphago: He tried to educate Muhammad Bin Salman a lot, but the problem was that his cultural education was lacking. If you look at third-generation princes, they speak English very well?not just Arabic-style English, but real American English with native-like pronunciation. Because third-generation princes are expected to hold high offices, they go to the U.S. for middle and high school.

Shin Ji-eun: So, princes don't just play around; they study hard.

Alphago: Absolutely. Princes and princesses have separate schools. They don't just aim for 'good schools'; they receive special education because there are thousands of them. But Muhammad Bin Salman has never been abroad.

Shin Ji-eun: Only in Saudi Arabia?

Alphago: Except for a few months of language training, he hasn't been abroad. And he can't speak English well.

Shin Ji-eun: He can't speak English?

Alphago: He mainly uses Arabic. Of course, he probably understands some English, but as far as I know, the only time he spoke English was briefly during a visit to the U.S. There is no record of him speaking English otherwise. This actually made him appear more relatable to Saudi citizens. Originally, third-generation princes were educated in the U.S. or U.K. and showed signs of distancing from Arab culture, but this prince was 'just like us,' 'he's just like us, so we like him,' and this image was somewhat polished before he rose to power.

This was the first reason. The second reason is different. Because there are many princes, some might have done strange things. But since he is royal, he receives special protection. Here, Muhammad Bin Salman's father's role comes into play. Bin Salman's father was responsible for punishing princes who did bad things. From the citizens' perspective, all princes are strange, but Prince Salman’s son Muhammad Bin Salman is seen as someone who views all incidents from the common people's standpoint, and they think, "He always stands with the common people," "This prince is the best." This is the second reason.

Shin Ji-eun: I see. This is something not well known. So, in conclusion, within Saudi Arabia, there isn't much perception of him as a ruthless ruler. Rather, he understands the common people's feelings well. Then why did the label 'ruthless ruler' come about?

Alphago: Because in 2017, a series of huge events occurred. Saudi people roughly know about these events. At that time, Muhammad Bin Salman was appointed Minister of Defense. After his father became king, he was originally governor of Riyadh. When his father was governor, the next king was the Minister of Defense?his older brother. But his brother died. Then another brother died, so he became Minister of Defense. The reason he became Minister of Defense was that when the king dies, he would become king. At that moment, the path opened for Muhammad Bin Salman. On June 21, 2017, he became Crown Prince.

Shin Ji-eun: So he removed all obstacles one by one.

Alphago: Yes. Diplomatically, Muhammad Bin Salman announced Vision 2030 and sent letters to people saying, "I'm weak in economics," "I don't know how to do it," and "Could my older brothers come and tell us what to do?" But from what I heard from Saudi friends, he didn't call them for economic advice but to reconcile because there was a lot of talk within the royal family. He called powerful princes holding good positions. Among those called was Chairman Lee Jae-yong. There was also Bin Talal, a very famous businessman, and even the owner of the building in Jeddah that will be the tallest in the world once completed. They were all called to a hotel. The Lebanese Prime Minister was also called to the country.

Shin Ji-eun: So they were all summoned.

Alphago: Yes, summoned and told, "Just sign here," or "You can't leave this building." Those holding official positions were forced to resign. For example, the head of the royal guard, who is actually the most powerful person in the Saudi military?not the Minister of Defense or the Commander-in-Chief, but the head of the royal guard?was made to resign, and part of their assets were forcibly taken. The Lebanese Prime Minister was also told, "Hey! You resign too." Think about it: when a foreign leader visits, they should be treated with utmost respect, but these things happened. From an external perspective, in terms of democracy and human rights, "This is bad," "This shouldn't be done," "This is not democracy." But this is the Middle East. I think you have to look at the results rather than the methods. Comparing Saudi Arabia before and after Muhammad Bin Salman, which Saudi Arabia looks better?

Shin Ji-eun: Well, I think now is better, right?

Alphago: Now is somewhat better. If you ask Saudi women, they say, "Thank you, Prince Muhammad Bin Salman," "Because of you, life is worth living now."

Shin Ji-eun: I see. So, in the end, he has somewhat dual aspects. It depends on the perspective. Then, looking back, is it true that it's hard to find a crown prince as popular as Bin Salman?

Alphago: Not a crown prince, but there was a king who changed and developed the country as much as Muhammad Bin Salman. King Faisal, but he was assassinated.

Shin Ji-eun: He was assassinated? Then is Bin Salman also in danger?

Alphago: That's why everyone wonders how far he will go.

Q. How is Bin Salman viewed in other Middle Eastern countries?

Shin Ji-eun: Expanding the scope a bit, you mentioned summoning the Lebanese Prime Minister to sign. There are power struggles among different Middle Eastern countries. Like the relationships between China and Japan in East Asia, how do those countries view Bin Salman?

Alphago: They are all watching cautiously. Because until now, Saudi kings were elderly grandfathers, and Saudi Arabia was always a cautious country that didn't interfere much in other countries. Whenever they wanted to do something, they would call other Gulf countries nearby to discuss and raise their voices together. But for the first time in 50 years, they are acting unilaterally and raising their voices alone. Probably the first since King Faisal. Saudi Arabia hadn't hosted international events before, but now they are trying to do so. Visits to Korea and such were rare. Bin Salman once said himself, "Our country used to be like North Korea." What he meant was that Saudi Arabia introduced tourist visas only in 2019. Before that, there were no tourist visas. Even if foreigners wanted to come for trade, they had to prove who they were trading with and why. Others were not allowed. It was very exclusive and closed off.

Shin Ji-eun: That's similar to North Korea. North Korea is somewhat like that now.

Alphago: But now, tourist visas have been issued mainly to major powers, and they plan to expand tourist visas to developing countries as a second phase.

Shin Ji-eun: So far, we've talked about unknown stories about Saudi Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman with journalist Alphago. We'll continue the discussion in part two.