Events Detail

The Project on National Security Reform (PNSR) is pleased to invite you to a Roundtable on Interagency Reform discussing a case study on "The Interagency, Eisenhower, and the House of Saud" by PNSR Research Fellow, Christine Gilbert.

Monday, February 11, 2008; 10:00-11:30am

Hudson Institute, Betsy and Walter Stern Conference Center, 6th floor Auditorium, 1015 15th Street, N.W., Washington, DC 20005. Refreshments will be provided.

Please RSVP (affirmative replies only) by sending your name and current institutional affiliation to Richard Weitz at Weitz@hudson.org .

In 1956, U.S. policymakers saw American objectives in the Middle East foundering in the face of Arab nationalism and Soviet influence in the region.  To resuscitate the government's agenda, President Eisenhower looked to Saudi Arabia. From mid-1956 through 1957, the president spearheaded an administration effort to make King Saud of Saudi Arabia a preeminent leader and ally in the Middle East.  Though overshadowed by the Suez Crisis and the promulgation of the Eisenhower Doctrine, the U.S. strategy toward King Saud was a notable part of greater U.S. regional policy and also marked a critical turning point in the United States relationship with Saudi Arabia.  Yet, by the close of 1957, American aims remained unrealized despite steadfast, empowered implementation.  This case study investigates this outcome as well as the bureaucratic development, implementation, and flaws of the King Saud strategy.  In conducting this examination, the study attempts to distill the interagency and other variables that brought about the adoption of an inherently incoherent strategy in the context of the highly structured processes of the Eisenhower-era national security apparatus.

The Project on National Security Reform (PNSR) is a non-partisan initiative sponsored by the non-profit Center for the Study of the Presidency (CSP). PNSR seeks to improve the U.S. Government's ability to integrate all elements of national power and more effectively respond to the strategic challenges of the 21st century. Modeled on the historic effort that led to the Goldwater-Nichols legislation, PNSR has established nine working groups that have begun a rigorous study of the national security system. Historical case studies constitute the first element of the study methodology. These case studies will inform the analytic work of PNSR's other working groups by highlighting recurring trends in the way the U.S. national security system responds to complex national security problems. Ultimately, PNSR will produce recommendations on changes to the National Security Act of 1947, presidential directives to implement other reforms, and new Congressional committee structures and practices.

We hope that you can attend this event.

Sincerely,

Richard Weitz, Ph.D., Leader

 Case Studies Working Group

Project on National Security Reform