[ad_1]
Trump's pick for ambassador to Saudi Arabia is John Abizaid, a retired four-star general who oversaw U.S. Central Command. | Win McNamee / Getty Images
President Donald Trump intends to nominate a general to fill the vacant role of the US ambassador to Saudi Arabia, a decision that comes about two years into his presidency and amidst tensions with Riyadh.
Trump's pick is John Abizaid, a retired four-star general who oversaw U.S. Central Command, a division that deals with the Middle East, according to a statement issued by the White House on Tuesday. Abizaid was a key American military figure during the years immediately after the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq.
Story Continued Below
The role of U.S. Ambassador to Saudi Arabia is a sensitive one even in the calmest times. Saudi Arabia is a major producer of oil and a key American ally against Iran. But it is also a conservative Muslim-majority country with a troubling record on human rights and extremism.
In recent months, the U.S.-Saudi relationship has been unusually turbulent. While Trump has gone out of its way to secure Saudi favor, U.S. lawmakers have grown more and more important in Saudi actions in Yemen, where fighting has begun.
The killing of Jamal Khashoggi, a columnist for The Washington Post, in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Turkey, last month also has badly strained relations. Khashoggi was a dissident Saudi who was living in the United States. He had criticized the powerful Saudi crown prince, Muhammad bin Salman, whom he viewed as an authoritarian.
The Khashoggi crisis drew attention to the administration's lack of an ambassador in Riyadh. It's not certain why Trump was so long to name someone to the post. But his son-in-law and adviser, Jared Kushner, may have a close relationship with the Saudi crown prince, possibly making the need for an official envoy seem less pressing.
Abizaid, a West Point graduate, has Lebanese roots and speaks Arabic. He is currently a visiting fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University. He also works as a private consultant, according to the White House statement.
His position will require confirmation, the timing of which is not guaranteed. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has recently been appointed to the Foreign Relations Committee, accusing them of stalling the confirmation process for U.S. Diplomats.
