What Crown Prince Salman’s reforms mean

They could close the tap of the largest source of funding for Islamic terror

Saudi Arabia isn’t the first country that comes to mind when there’s talk of radical social and political change. Nor the second or even the tenth. A combination of a monarchy legitimised by an orthodox clergy and funded by the world’s largest reserve of accessible oil and gas has mitigated any desire for change. Little wonder then, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s aggressive push to upend the Wahhabi applecart surprised everyone. His plans to list Aramco, the trillion-dollar State-owned oil company, and encourage local entrepreneurship and employment were unremarkable. Then came his announcement that women would be allowed to drive cars, a move that raised eyebrows. Now comes what is effectively a purge of the Saudi ruling establishment — the arrest of 10 princes of the blood, four ministers, and dozens of former senior officials . To be sure, this could be the heir to the throne consolidating his position, but it could also be a sign that he wishes to remodel Saudi Arabia into a nation that is more modern and more moderate.

India has benefited to some degree from the crown prince’s reform attempts. Riyadh has diluted its strategic ties with Pakistan. It has also become much more helpful in providing intelligence about terrorists to New Delhi. And it has also expressed its interest in developing a larger economic footprint in India’s energy sector. If Crown Prince Salman takes his reforms to their logical conclusion, it might mean the end of the largest source of funding for the most extreme strands of the religion.

This is all good, but New Delhi will be wary. A country with weak political institutions is difficult to reform. The prince’s strategy seems to be centralise power rather than seek a consensus among the various players. It is impossible to tell in a country that remains opaque as to whether he will be remembered as the visionary or the failure.