Saudi Melancholy: Between Palestine and America

Born in 1985, I spent my formative middle and high school years during the period when the United States was at its most powerful in history. The Cold War had ended, Japan's economic miracle had concluded with the burst of the bubble economy, and the United States had established an unparalleled position as a military and economic superpower. This was before the full-scale rise of China, and international affairs were defined by America's "diplomacy through force," as seen in the intervention in Kosovo, the Afghanistan War, and the Iraq War.

Born in 1985, I spent my formative middle and high school years during the period when the United States was at its most powerful in history. The Cold War had ended, Japan's economic miracle had concluded with the burst of the bubble economy, and the United States had established an unparalleled position as a military and economic superpower. This was before the full-scale rise of China, and international affairs were defined by America's "diplomacy through force," as seen in the intervention in Kosovo, the Afghanistan War, and the Iraq War.

On the other hand, because the international community is a collection of sovereign states, I had an early awareness that I first had to study international politics. I believed that without understanding this, it would be difficult to consider realistic solutions no matter how much I researched the issues. That was the reason I chose an undergraduate program where I could study international relations and a graduate school where I could study political science.

In graduate school, I wanted to research the Palestinian issue, where I felt the contradictions of international politics were most concentrated. However, after studying Arabic in Kuwait for a year, I shifted the focus of my research from the Palestinian issue itself to Kuwait's response to it. Later, I moved my research focus to Saudi Arabia, which has more influence among the Gulf states, and after studying abroad in that country, I completed the doctoral dissertation that became the basis for this book.

Saudi Arabia is a leader in the Arab world, and its trends have a significant impact on other Arab countries. Furthermore, it has a deep relationship with the United States in terms of security, a point that overlaps with Japan. This book traces how this country has wavered between identity-based elements such as Arab-Islam and material elements such as security and economy, and I believe it will surely provide suggestions for the study of foreign policy in other countries as well.

Saudi Melancholy: Between Palestine and America

Shigeto Kondo

Keio University Press

232 pages, 2,640 yen (tax included)