@FAlhamid
If the recent visit of Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to Washington changed the Republican administration’s stereotyped thinking about Saudi Arabia and Islam, as it changed the rules of the game and the system of engagement in the region, then US President Trump’s historic speech before the Arab-American Islamic summit yesterday in Riyadh on Islam On the other hand, he completely changed the stereotype that existed among the leaders of Arab and Islamic countries about the personality of the president and his vision of Islam. After confirming in his speech that Islam is a religion of tolerance, moderation, and moderation, he did not mention the term “Islamic terrorism,” which he used throughout his election campaign.
This shift was described by observers as “qualitative” in Trumpian thought, which MBS succeeded in changing through his direct, rational and frank discourse with the leaders of the Republican administration in the “Oval House” about Islam, a tolerant religion far from terrorism, and about Saudi Arabia, the country that was affected and suffered from terrorism. The two things. And the fruits of Mohammed bin Salman’s dialogue at the White House bore fruit in the “Determination Brings Us Together” summits, which he engineered calmly and skillfully with the American administration, when Trump surprised, with his moderate and balanced speech, not only the leaders of Arab and Islamic countries, but also the strategic research centers, “think tanks” and the American media. both.
These centers agreed that his speech was “more tolerant” towards Islam and Muslims, contrary to his statements during his election campaign, stressing that Trump changed his stereotypical idea of the Islamic religion due to the positive brainstorming by the deputy crown prince, which was reflected in the strategic thinking of the American administration that chose to “Saudi Arabia first” will be on his first foreign tour, as it is the cradle of messages, and this is what Trump also talked about in his speech.
Trump used careful language of appeasement when talking about Islam, which was met with great relief not only in Gulf, Arab and Islamic circles, but even in Islamic circles at home in America, who sensed a change in the Trumpian language, which prompted them to feel reassured by this change in American policy approach.
According to American sources, Trump's strategic advisors realized the need to return to the close ally, Saudi Arabia, and were convinced of the objective vision put forward by Prince Mohammed bin Salman, and realized that the collision would not achieve results, but rather would complicate the situation in the region and the world. While using calm language and focusing on combating dark terrorism through collective action will lead to a faster result, which was achieved on the ground in the "Determination Unites Us" summits, especially when Trump cited the battle against terrorism in his speech, considering it a war between good and evil from different religions, to put Islamic countries that fight terrorism are on the axis of good, and terrorists in general are on the axis of evil. According to reliable sources in the White House, Trump's advisors, specifically his speech writer Stephen Miller, stressed that the US president should not classify Islam as an enemy at all, considering that this is inconsistent with the tolerant vision of the Islamic religion, and asked him to direct the core of the speech against terrorists, which prompted him to avoid using The term combating radical Islamic terrorism, and replacing it with a lighter phrase, which is “Islamic extremism.” This also reflects the vision of Prince Muhammad bin Salman, who confirmed during his meeting with Trump, “that Islam is not a religion of terrorism, and that what ISIS is doing has nothing to do with Islam at all.”
Accordingly, Trump's call on Islamic countries to take the initiative to combat terrorism and extremism, for the sake of a better future for future generations, was met with interest in Arab and Islamic circles.
And if the "summits of determination" have ended.. the actions of "determination and firmness" have not yet begun, but they will soon be launched through specific mechanisms in the interest of establishing peace and stability in the Middle East, eradicating terrorism, and exposing its financiers and the providers of safe havens to its leaders.
Fahim Al-Hamid (Jeddah)