Saudi Arabia Suddenly Has A New Crown Prince

Saudi Arabia's King Salman on Wednesday appointed his 31-year-old son Mohammed bin Salman as crown prince, placing him first-in-line to the throne and removing the country's counterterrorism czar and a figure well-known to Washington from the line of succession. They seeded loyalists to the younger prince, in numerous regional governor posts across the country.

There is no doubt that the new Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, who is considered "the most risky man" in the Middle East, will initiate radical changes in the region. He has embraced the media in a distinct departure from the normally secretive Saudi ruling class, with his bearded features rarely off TV screens or street billboards.

The prince's foreign policy is meanwhile reshaping the kingdom's role on the regional and global stage.

The 31-year-old has already supported the kingdom's involvement in a war in Yemen and broken diplomatic ties with fellow OPEC member Qatar.

Bernard Haykel, professor of Near Eastern Studies at Princeton, said the king's decision was aimed at avoiding a power struggle between his son and Mohammed bin Nayef by setting the line of succession out clearly.

The two countries are bitter regional rivals, and severed diplomatic ties a year ago.

While the proposals to rid Saudi Arabia of its "addiction" to oil have prompted unease many senior officials, they have been widely welcomed by younger Saudis.

Even when there is disagreement, the royal family has long followed a tradition of speaking with one voice, particularly on issues of succession, in order to appear united in front of Saudi Arabia's many tribes and communities.

Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, 57, who was wounded in an al Qaeda assassination attempt in 2009, put down an al Qaeda bombing campaign and kept close ties to the USA intelligence community where he had a reputation as safe and reliable.

However, the analyst says the speed at which the new crown prince has pushed his assertive policies, including the war in Yemen and an effort to privatize part of the kingdom's state-run oil company, has unnerved some within the royal family. The key question is what comes next in this quest to counter Iranian influence? Saudi security police closely monitor Saudis with suspected connections to militants and have detained more than 15,000 suspects in the years since al Qaeda's campaign.

Throughout the early morning it aired footage of Mohammed bin Nayef pledging allegiance to the younger Mohammed bin Salman, who knelt and kissed his cousin's hand.

According to US-based NGO Freedom House, Saudi Arabia "restricts nearly all political rights and civil liberties through a combination of oppressive laws and the use of force". Saudi Arabia's net foreign exchange reserves peaked at almost $750bn in 2014 before oil prices crashed.

Mohammed bin Salman has also been named deputy Prime Minister but still conserves his role as defense minister. It can not be ruled out that Saudi Arabia will support the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) and the Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD), which don't hide that they won't leave the territories liberated by them from the "Islamic State" (IS) terrorists.

Inside the country, opinions are divided.

Nonetheless, his government will need higher crude prices to push ahead with his plans to reform the kingdom's economy, and that makes an immediate change in oil policy unlikely.