UAE and Golden Visa Strategy

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is speed-dating and gaming simultaneously on multiple diplomatic, religious and economic chessboards.

The latest feather in his crown, his appointed as prime ministerdesigned to ensure he can continue to do so with as little collateral damage as possible.

that date protect him from legal action in the United StatesFrance, and possibly elsewhere, including the International Criminal Court in The Hague, where plaintiffs claim that Mr. bin Salman was responsible for the 2018 killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.

As head of government, Mr bin Salman enjoys sovereign immunity and he cannot claim to be the heir.

While the legal means will certainly succeed, it is unlikely to significantly improve his image tarnished by the killings and domestic crackdown on dissent, and in recent weeks he has been jailed for decades for just one tweet.

Reputation issues haven’t stopped Mr bin Salman from running high in his efforts to diversify Saudi Arabia’s oil-dependent economy; displace regional rivals such as the United Arab Emirates and Qatar as the centre of gravity at the intersection of Asia, Africa and Europe; Demonstrate his diplomatic influence and relevance beyond oil; and position himself and the kingdom as a beacon for a moderate but authoritarian form of Islam.

Mr. Bin Salman’s multi-pronged sprint has produced mixed results.

On his most recent trip to the international stage, Mr bin Salman sought to demonstrate his diplomatic skills and international relevance by securing the release of ten foreigners arrested by Russia while fighting for Ukraine. The foreigner’s release is part of a Ukrainian-Russian prisoner swap negotiated by Turkey.

Despite Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud’s refusal “Very cynical” The assertion that Mr. Bin Salman is trying to boost his image by linking with the exchange, Russian President Vladimir Putin seems happy to lend a hand to him.

Likewise, those close to bin Salman believe the crown prince’s lifting of the ban on women’s driving and improving women’s rights and career opportunities are what sparked Iran’s women-led protests into their third week. And Iran recently eased its ban on women’s participation in men’s soccer.

Ali Shihabi, an analyst who often echoes official Saudi views, claimed in a tweet that “Saudi women’s reforms have had a major impact on the Islamic world. The dramatic change in #MBS, a former champion of ultra-Orthodoxy, has Sends a powerful signal, undercutting Uber conservatives across the region, like the mullahs in Iran. “Mr Shihabi was referring to Mr Bin Salman’s initials.

The death of a young woman in the custody of Iran’s ethics police has sparked nationwide protests.police have Mahsa Amini, 22, arrested for wearing ‘inappropriate’ headscarf, authorities say.

By contrast, Mr bin Salman’s efforts to diversify the economy appear to be yielding clearer results. For example, the Saudi Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources issued more than 500 industrial licenses in the first six months of this year, mainly in the food, steel and chemical industries.

The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology reported that, The number of factories starting operations has doubled, from 303 to 721.Buoyed by huge oil export earnings, Mr Bin Salman wants to build a brand “Made in Saudi Arabia” Marked as part of his non-oil export activities.

Even so, foreign investment in manufacturing got off to a slow start, especially in Mr Bin Salman’s, sometimes futuristic, mega-projects. The $500 billion Red Sea city of Neom. New Jersey-based Lucid Group announced in February that it would establish Its first overseas EV production facility in the kingdom.

Even more controversial are plans for Neom Beach, scheduled to open next year Wine Bar, Independent Cocktail Bar and “Champagne and Dessert” Bar in a country where alcohol is prohibited.

These plans appear to be out of sync with the religious sentiments of a large proportion of Gulf youth, if recent polls can be believed,

41% of young Gulf Arabs, including Saudis, say religion is the most important factor in their identity, while nationality, family and/or tribe, Arab heritage and gender all lag far behind.

More than half of respondents (56%) said their country’s legal system should be based on Sharia or Sharia. 70% are concerned about the loss of traditional values ​​and culture.

Turning the kingdom into a sports and esports hub is tougher than economics.

In his latest move, Mr Bin Salman has launched a $38 billion “National Gaming and Esports Strategy” aimed at making Saudi Arabia a leader in esports by 2030.budget includes $13 billion for the acquisition of a “leading game publisher.” Kingdom has invested in Capcom, Nexon, Nintendo, ESL games, SNK and Embracer Group.

In addition, Saudi music and entertainment company MDLBEAST sees business opportunities at the 2022 Qatar World Cup, which will also help to transform the once-mysterious kingdom into a forward-looking modern nation. MDLBEAST invited 56 top international and regional performers entertain fans on custom arena in Doha During the 28 days of the competition.

On a larger scale, Saudi Arabia and Egypt, two of the world’s most notorious human rights abusers, along with Greece, are considering Bid for the 2030 World Cup — If Qatar’s experience is an indicator, it sounds like a perfect PR fiasco.

Potential bid didn’t stop football icon Cristiano Ronaldo shatters Saudi’s initial hopes When he turned down a $258 million offer to play for Al Hilal, one of Saudi Arabia’s top clubs, to lure a superstar to the kingdom’s top football league.

Likewise, Saudi Arabia strives to Funding for PGA Tour challenger Liv GolfThe organizer of North America’s major professional men’s golf tournament has turned into a PR fiasco amid accusations that the kingdom is trying to whitewash its reputation.

The refusal of major broadcasters to get the rights to broadcast the league tour is an example of its problems.

Religion has proven to be the arena on which Saudi Arabia could get its most prominent public relations feast.

The Muslim World League, Mr bin Salman’s main vehicle to gain religious soft power and spread social freedom but authoritarian Islam that demands absolute obedience to its rulers, achieved a public relations coup when it forged an unlikely alliance with Nahdlatul Ulama . Nahratul Ulama.

Nahdlatul Ulama is arguably the only mass movement in the world that spreads a truly moderate and pluralistic form of Islam.

In addition, as the world’s most populous Muslim-majority country and the largest Muslim civil society movement in a democracy, Nahdlatul Ulama’s Words and deeds matter.

As a result, the coalition was a blessing when Nahdlatul Ulama’ admitted it was an NGO rather than a de facto extension of Mr Bin Salman’s rule.

The recognition opens the door for the coalition, which has so far been trading in Saudi Arabia for custody of two of Islam’s holiest cities, Mecca and Medina. High-profile announcements and meetings produced little real change; funding emergency and development aid around the world.

It allows Nahdlatul Ulama to invite a coalition of key promoters of Saudi ultraconservatism before Mr Bin Salman’s rise to co-organise the newly formed Religion 20 (R20), a G20-sponsored summit of religious leaders that brings together the world’s largest economies body.

The first R20 summit scheduled for early November in Bali is G20 leaders meeting hosted by Indonesia later this month, Group Chairman of the Year. The R20 is the latest official engagement group of the G20 to “position religion as a source of solutions rather than a global problem”.

The limits of Saudi tolerance were made clear last month when authorities arrested a pilgrim heading to Mecca Dedicated his pilgrimage to Queen Elizabeth of Englanda non-Muslim who just died.

Nahdlatul’s engagement with the alliance is part of a bold and risky strategy. However, Nahdlatul Ulama believes that participation creates an opportunity to convince the coalition to embrace a more authentic and comprehensive vision of moderate Islam, rather than a self-serving vision.

That may be a long-term goal, but it could also be a way of putting Saudi Arabia on a path that will help repair its badly damaged image. That is, if Mr bin Salman combines true religious moderation and pluralism with a backsliding of domestic repression and greater political pluralism. So far, that appears to be something the crown prince is reluctant to consider.

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