. . . a unique historical document about one of the key relationships we have with states of the Middle East. --Richard B. Parker". . . a seminal contribution to our understanding of the origins and bumpy evolution of the U.S.-Saudi Arabian relationship in the context of the overall Middle East situation." --Hermann F. Eilts"Hart's combination of firsthand experience and his research into the archives has produced a very personal and at times quite moving work on one of America's key relationships." --Dennis KuxFrom the opening of a U.S. consulate in Dhahran in 1944 through the conclusion of his ambassadorship to Saudi Arabia in 1965, Parker T. Hart played a critical part in building the U.S.-Saudi security relationship that remains to this day a key aspect of U.S. diplomacy in the Middle East. Drawing on his personal involvement in events as well as the documentary record, Hart illuminates both U.S. dealings with the Saudi leadership and internal politics within the leadership itself. Hart's account sheds new light on the building of an airbase at Dhahran in the 1940s, the crisis caused by Gamal Abdel Nasser's attempt to control Yemen in the early 1960s, and Ellsworth Bunker's mission to resolve the Egyptian-Saudi confrontation over Yemen. Of particular interest are Hart's portraits of the three Saudi rulers with whom he interacted: King Abd al-Aziz (Ibn Saud), King Saud, and King Faisal. The United States and Saudi Arabia provides insights into current issues--such as the question of Saudi national sovereignty, the protection of U.S. military bases, and the security of vast Saudi oil resources--that have been politically sensitive over the long term. Published in association with the Association for Diplomatic Studies and Training.