“The personal ambitions and challenges of Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman (MBS) and the new shift in the US policy towards the region undoubtedly offer the Russians an opportunity they could not miss to make strong advances at the expense of their traditional rivals.”

–Fadi Assaf, co-founder of Beirut-based consultancy Middle East Strategic Perspectives (MESP), in a report for Breaking Defense. Saudi Arabia is increasingly willing to diversify its defense relationships beyond its longtime focus on the United States, the report says. [breakingdefense.com]