The Untold Story Behind Saudi Arabia's 41-Year US Debt Secret

[eridani]

http://readersupportednews.org/news-section2/318-66/37173-the-untold-story-behind-saudi-arabias-41-year-us-debt-secret

The basic framework was strikingly simple. The U.S. would buy oil from Saudi Arabia and provide the kingdom military aid and equipment. In return, the Saudis would plow billions of their petrodollar revenue back into Treasuries and finance America’s spending.

It took several discreet follow-up meetings to iron out all the details, Parsky said. But at the end of months of negotiations, there remained one small, yet crucial, catch: King Faisal bin Abdulaziz Al Saud demanded the country’s Treasury purchases stay “strictly secret,” according to a diplomatic cable obtained by Bloomberg from the National Archives database.

With a handful of Treasury and Federal Reserve officials, the secret was kept for more than four decades—until now. In response to a Freedom-of-Information-Act request submitted by Bloomberg News, the Treasury broke out Saudi Arabia’s holdings for the first time this month after “concluding that it was consistent with transparency and the law to disclose the data,” according to spokeswoman Whitney Smith. The $117 billion trove makes the kingdom one of America’s largest foreign creditors.

Yet in many ways, the information has raised more questions than it has answered. A former Treasury official, who specialized in central bank reserves and asked not to be identified, says the official figure vastly understates Saudi Arabia’s investments in U.S. government debt, which may be double or more.

The current tally represents just 20 percent of its $587 billion of foreign reserves, well below the two-thirds that central banks typically keep in dollar assets. Some analysts speculate the kingdom may be masking its U.S. debt holdings by accumulating Treasuries through offshore financial centers, which show up in the data of other countries.

[leveymg]

1. Greenmailed. And this is a national secret, why?

Parsky. That name rings some bells. Bookmarked. One of the more important articles you will read this decade.

[JCMach1]

2. The Saudi ruling family doesn't want this stuff as public knowledge... if the 99% knew,

they would be lucky to make it to their Swiss mansions alive.

The amounts privatized (i.e. stolen from the people by the Gulf rulers boggles the mind).

[leveymg]

3. If I were a cynic, I'd say no wonder we let them get away with 9/11.

But, that wouldn't be putting it strongly enough.

[Snarkoleptic]

4. With friends like these, who needs enemies?

"I summon my blue-eyed slaves anytime it pleases me. I command the Americans to send me their bravest soldiers to die for me. Anytime I clap my hands a stupid genie called the American ambassador appears to do my bidding. When the Americans die in my service their bodies are frozen in metal boxes by the US Embassy and American airplanes carry them away, as if they never existed. Truly, America is my favorite slave.” --- King Fahd Bin Abdul-Aziz, Jeddeh 1993

“If the reputation builds that the Saudis take care of their friends when they leave office, you’d be surprised how much better friends you have who are just coming into office.” --- Ambassador Prince Bandar on Washington

[riderinthestorm]

5. This story explains a lot.

No doubt this is one of the most important stories in many years. Just stunning in its implications.

Bookmarking. Thanks eridani.

[riderinthestorm]

6. SMH, this is major exposure of why the US acts so inexplicably with the Saudis

PM kick!!


(This should be generating so much buzz...)

[KamaAina]

7. So they own us. That explains a LOT.

[eridani]

8. One very clear example of petrosexuality n/t