''We're not in crisis'': New Saudi foreign minister takes the reins
Riyadh, Dec 28: Saudi Arabia's new foreign minister struck a note of defiance Friday in the face of international outrage over critic Jamal Khashoggi's murder, rejecting the kingdom was in crisis and his predecessor had been demoted.
Ibrahim al-Assaf, a former veteran finance minister who was briefly detained last year in what Riyadh said was an anti-corruption sweep, replaced Adel al-Jubeir as foreign minister in a major government shake-up on Thursday ordered by King Salman.
The surprise reshuffle was seen partly as an attempt to elevate the kingdom's marginalised old guard, adding a veneer of checks and balances in the policy decisions of 33-year-old Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who faces intense global scrutiny over the October 2 murder of journalist Khashoggi.
But speaking to AFP in his first interview since his appointment, Assaf insisted the restructuring was motivated not by the Khashoggi affair, but the need to make the government machinery more efficient.
"The issue of Jamal Khashoggi really saddened us, all of us," Assaf told AFP at his residence in Riyadh, adorned with mahogany furniture, a wall-mounted elephant tusk and other hunting trophies.
"But all in all, we are not going through a crisis, we are going through a transformation," he added, referring to social and economic reforms spearheaded by the crown prince.
Assaf, 69, inherits the ministry after a series of combative foreign policy moves by the crown prince, who along with regional allies imposed a blockade on neighbouring Qatar, launched a military campaign in Yemen and engaged in a bitter diplomatic row with Canada.
Topping it all, Khashoggi's murder in Saudi Arabia's Istanbul consulate by what it calls "rogue" agents is testing relations with key ally Washington, particularly after a US Senate resolution recently held Prince Mohammed responsible for the killing.
When asked whether his biggest foreign policy challenge was to repair the kingdom's tarnished reputation, Assaf replied: "I wouldn't say 'repair' because the relationship between my country and a vast majority of countries in the world is in excellent shape."
Before him, Jubeir also sought to vigorously defend the government and the crown prince, widely known as MBS, on the international stage over Khashoggi's murder.
In Thursday's reshuffle, Jubeir was appointed minister of state for foreign affairs, fuelling speculation that he had been demoted after he failed to quell global criticism over Khashoggi.
"This is far from the truth," Assaf said, adding that Jubeir had performed with distinction.
Jubeir's new role, he insisted, was tantamount to a division of labour and not a demotion, in a bid to accelerate the task of remaking a ministry known to be overly bureaucratic.
"Adel represented Saudi Arabia and will continue to represent Saudi Arabia around the world," Assaf said.
"We complement each other."
A seasoned bureaucrat, Assaf was briefly held in Riyadh's Ritz-Carlton hotel last year along with hundreds of elite princes and businessmen, in what the government called a crackdown against corruption.
Saudi officials say he was released after being cleared of any wrongdoing, and he subsequently led a government delegation to the World Economic Forum in Davos earlier this year.
His reappointment to a cabinet role indicates the government is seeking to slowly "rehabilitate" the experienced old guard, widely seen to be sidelined by the young prince, observers say.
"King Salman is seeking to bolster his son by appointing seasoned technocrats like Assaf who are not from MBS's inner circle, indirectly reinstating an internal system of checks and balances that was swept away in his drive to consolidate power," said Becca Wasser.
"Adding experienced government hands from an older generation, will serve to check some of MBS's impulses," the policy analyst at the US-based RAND Corporation told AFP.
The elevation of seasoned allies in Thursday's reshuffle has bolstered the authority of Prince Mohammed, after the removal of younger aides in his inner circle implicated in Khashoggi's murder, including former royal court advisor Saud al-Qahtani.
Assaf, who is on the boards of state oil giant Aramco and the vast Public Investment Fund, said his appointment as the top diplomat would help bring his financial experience to foreign affairs amid a current "dip" in the economy.
"Economic relationships now dominate foreign" affairs, Assaf said.
"I say with all modesty that my experience will help."
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I see no politics in it: Tharoor on being invited to lead delegation on Operation Sindoor
Thiruvananthapuram, May 17 (PTI): Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Saturday stood by his decision to accept the Centre's invite to lead a multi-party delegation abroad to put across India's stand against Pakistan on terrorism, saying "I see no politics in it".
At the same time, he denied any knowledge about any names being suggested by the Congress for the delegation, saying that it was between the party and the central government.
Tharoor, speaking to reporters here, said that Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju recently officially invited him to lead the delegation in view of his past experience in handling foreign affairs and "I immediately agreed".
"I see no politics in it. According to me, politics become important when we have a nation. We all are Indians. When the nation is in crisis and the central government seeks the help of a citizen, what other answer would you give," the Congress MP from Thiruvananthapuram said.
He further said that everyone saw the 88 hours long battle with Pakistan and therefore, "we all need to have a role in what the world is saying about us".
"It is in that spirit I agreed to it," Tharoor added.
On being asked by reporters whether the Congress was unhappy with his decision and why it released the names of the people it had suggested for the delegation, Tharoor said the media should pose these queries to the grand old party.
"You will have to ask them (Congress)," he said when asked whether the party has any reservations about him leading the delegation.
He also said that when he initially received a call from Rijiju inviting him to lead the delegation, he had informed the party about it.
On reporters' queries whether the party was trying to insult him by releasing the names suggested by it for the delegation, Tharoor said that he cannot be insulted so easily. "I know my worth," he asserted.
He said the Centre sought his service for the nation and he was always ready for it.
"National service is the duty of every citizen," he added.
The Congress MP further said that when the country is attacked, "all of us speaking in one voice and standing united is good for the nation, according to me".
The central government has named Tharoor as leader of one of the seven multi-party delegations to project India's national consensus and resolute approach to combating terrorism in all forms and manifestations and carry to the world the country's message of zero tolerance against terrorism.
Reacting to the development, Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh said earlier in the day that there was a difference between "being in the Congress and of the Congress".
He also said that in a democratic system, when individual MPs are sent as part of an official delegation, MPs must seek the concurrence of the party.
Ramesh also said that the party nominated former Union Minister Anand Sharma, the party's Deputy Leader in the Lok Sabha Gaurav Gogoi, Rajya Sabha MP Syed Naseer Hussain and Lok Sabha MP Raja Brar after the government asked for the names of four MPs for the delegations.
