Saudi Arabia’s Leadership Changes: Implications for Stability and Energy Marketss

On Friday, May 29, 2015, the Atlantic Council hosted a panel, which discussed the impact recent leadership changes in Saudi Arabia will have on global energy markets as well as on regional stability and security. Panelists addressed the following questions: Is the restructuring of Saudi Aramco indicative of future changes within Saudi Arabia’s energy sector? How will the outcomes of the Camp David meeting between President Obama and Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) leaders and a potential June P5+1 agreement with Iran influence Saudi actions in the region?

Panelists included Dr. Anthony H. Cordesman, the Arleigh A. Burke Chair in Strategy at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, The Hon. Francis J. Ricciardone, Vice President and Director of the Atlantic Council’s Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East, and Dr. Jean-François Seznec, Visiting Associate Professor at Georgetown University’s Center for Contemporary Arab Studies. David Goldwyn, President of Goldwyn Global Strategies and Chair of the Atlantic Council Energy Advisory Board, moderated the discussion and The Hon. Richard Morningstar, Founding Director of the Atlantic Council’s Global Energy Center, delivered welcome remarks.