Do the Saudis have any troops? I thought they outsource all that stuff to DynCorp and other mercs?

[NNN0LHI]

I think they have a passable air force but I have never heard much about a Saudi army before. By what I have read I have assumed that if there ever was ever any real Saudi army they would overthrow the mafia like ruling family in charge of the place in a jiffy. Thats why they have to farm the work out to western security companies.

Do I have this right?

Don

[alofarabia]

1. Saudi Military

You are partly right. If the Saudis had a single army it would eventually be used by one of the princes to overthrow the king. That is why the Saudis have two distinct militaries. They have the regular army, whose stated goal is to protect from external foes, and the national guard, which is responsible for internal security. They are headed by separate princes and used to counterbalance each other. It seems to have worked so far (but neither is a particularly effective fighting force).

[JCMach1]

2. Oh, and a large part of the grunts are not Saudi...

It's the same with the military in the UAE...

They are full of Omanis, Yemenis, other Arabs...

[ConsAreLiars]

3. That makes sense.. Thanks for your information.

(And welcome to DU!)

My experience (Afghanistan) suggests that kinship bonds (family village tribe sect) generally are far stronger than any job assignment (like army) and so getting a loyal army means either an army organized on a kinship or tribal basis, which would be clearly partisan and a threat to other groups, or going outside for mercenaries. It is something I hadn't thought about before.

Again, thank you and welcome.

[alofarabia]

4. Tribal bonds

You are absolutely right about tribal bonds being very strong, and stronger than bonds to the military itself. The national guard started basically as payments to tribes to secure allegience. Only later were things more formal - with required training for recruits, modern military structure, standardized equipment, etc.