Problems of Saudi Arabian national identity and the growth of radical Islam

Abstract

The article is devoted to the study of the formation of a special national identity of Saudi Arabia based on the puritan religious-reformist stream of the sunni Islam of the late 18th century and its influence on the growth of radical Islam in the Middle East today. The comparative and empirical analysis of domestic and foreign policy of Saudi Arabia at specific historical stages, based on various sources, indicates the existence of a causal relationship to the formation of the national identity of the Kingdom and the growth of the radical ideology of Islam in the region. This article discusses two factors that have had a significant impact on the emergence of Saudi Arabia’s national identity based on a keen appeal to religion: the legitimacy of al-Saud dynasty power based on Wahhabism, the 1979 Iranian revolution’s influence on Saudi Arabian foreign policy.