St. Louis Post-Dispatch January 26, 2003
KINGDOM OF SAUDI ARABIA
Saudi Arabia lays claim to some of the world's most valuable oil deposits beneath land largely blanketed by barren desert. It is known as the birthplace of Islam, and is the cradle of the Arab people. Petroleum profits have thrust it into the modern age and made it one of the most powerful nations in the Middle East. In 2000, normally good relations with the U.S. grew strained when Crown Prince Abdullah blamed Washington for the collapse of peace talks at an Arab summit in Cairo. Once the base of operations for the U.N. coalition in the 1991 Gulf War, and again quietly for the United States' air campaign over Afghanistan in 2002, Saudi Arabia has publicly proven less cooperative in a possible campaign against Iraq.
Country profile
AREA
Approximately 1.2 million square miles
POPULATION
23.5 million
GDP (per capita)
$10,600
OIL RESERVES
263 billion barrels
TROOPS
201,500
RELIGION
Mostly Muslim
ETHNIC GROUPS
90% Arab, 10% Afro-Asian
LANGUAGES
Official language is Arabic. However, English is taught in schools and is widely used in business.
FLAG DESCRIPTION
Adopted in 1973, it is green (traditional color of Islam) with large white Arabic script above a horizontal saber. The script translated says, "There is no God but God; Muhammad is the Messenger of God."
ECONOMY
Has the world's largest petroleum reserves and ranks as the world's largest petroleum exporter. The oil industry accounts for more than 90 percent of the nation's exports and nearly 75 percent of government revenues. However, the oil industry only employs a small percent of all Saudi workers. In the 1990s, Saudi Arabia launched a series of plans aimed at diversifying its economy. Their goal is to balance an economy largely reliant on oil with manufacturing and irrigated farming. These reforms have stalled because of a mismatch in the level of job skills by Saudi graduates and the needs of the private job markets.
GOVERNMENT
Absolute monarchy ruled by the Al Saud family. The kingdom is divided into 13 provinces governed by princes or close relatives of the royal family. Since 1982, King Fahd presided over Saudi Arabia until suffering a stroke in 1995. His half brother and designated successor, Prince Abdullah, runs the day-to-day responsibilities. The Muslim faith is tied closely to how the king rules the country. The Quran serves as the country's constitution.
ROLE OF RELIGION
Saudis adhere to a strict interpretation of Islam called Wahhabism. They conform to narrowly defined standards of ethics. All religions except for Islam in the country are banned. Alcohol is banned and work ceases five times a day to observe prayer. Islam requires that all able-bodied Muslims make a pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in their lifetime. The annual pilgrimage is called hajj, and takes place during the last month of the Muslim year. It lasts for 5 days, during which the pilgrims travel to several holy places and perform rituals.
Key historic dates
700 B.C. Sabaeans inhabit present-day Southwestern Saudi Arabia and Western Yemen.
400 B.C. -100 A.D. Nabataeans control trade routes in present-day Northwestern Saudi Arabia and Jordan.
570 The prophet Muhammad, born in Mecca, develops Islam.
622 Muhammad and followers flee to Medina.
630 Muhammad returns to Mecca with army and captures city, converts people to Islam.
632 Muhammad dies.
Mid-600s Muhammad's successors (caliphs) conquer Saudi territory.
750 Muslim empire breaks up into territories.
Mid-1400s Saud family is established but controls only small area around present-day Riyadh.
Early-1500s Ottoman Empire gains strength.
Mid-1700s Muhammad ibn Saud, dynasty leader, forms alliance with religious reformer Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab. Wahhab movement spreads over much of Arabia.
Mid-1800s Saud dynasty gains control of much of Saudi Arabia. Sauds still threatened by Ottomans.
1891 Ottomans gain control of most of Arabia. The Saud family flee in exile to Kuwait.
1902 Abd al-Aziz ibn Saud, a young Saudi leader, leads raid and captures Riyadh.
1906-1932 Saud leaders fight to regain dynasty's territory and revive Wahhabi movement.
1932 Ibn Saud forms kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
1933 American oil companies search for oil in Saudi Arabia.
1938 Oil is discovered. Production begins rapidly after WWII.
1945 Saudi Arabia joins U.N. and Arab League.
1953 Ibn Saud dies. He is succeeded by eldest son Saud.
1964 Saud is forced to give up throne to his brother Faisal.
1967 Saudi Arabia supports Egypt, Jordan and Syria in the six-day war against Israel. Israel is victorious.
1973 Saudi Arabia reduces oil shipment to some Western nations after another Arab-Israeli war breaks out.
1975 Faisal is assassinated by his nephew. He is succeeded by half brother Prince Khalid.
1982 Khalid dies, he is succeeded by half brother Prince Fahd.
1988 Saudi Arabia assumes full control over its oil productions.
1991 Saudi Arabia aids U.S.-led U.N. coalition in liberating Kuwait from Iraq in first Gulf War.
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(Text accompanying map)
NORTHERN DESERT
Blanketed by sand dunes and rock, thinly populated.
EASTERN LOWLANDS
A fertile oasis, contains world's largest known oil deposits.
CENTRAL PLATEAU
Flat with little vegetation
WESTERN HIGHLANDS
Low rocky mountains rise from the sea.
RUB AL KHALI
Desolate sandy desert, uninhabited but traveled by nomads.
Mecca - Islam's most holy site
(Keyed locations for Air Force Naval Army bases)
GRAPHIC: PHOTO, GRAPHIC, MAP; (1) Photo headshot - Prince Abdullah GRAPHIC (2) Map by JACOB PIERCY/POST-DISPATCH - (the globe with the location of Saudi Arabia boxed); (3) Map by JACOB PIERCY/POST-DISPATCH - (the Arabian peninsula and surrounding areas); (4) Map - (the outline of Saudi Arabia with the outlines of Missouri and Illinois imposed); (5) Graphic / Illustration - (the Saudi Arabian flag); SOURCES: CIA world fact book, Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, GlobalSecurity.org and U.S. State Department
Copyright © 2003 St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Inc.
