And Obama didn't just lecture on the need for tolerance of religious minorities. He spoke of the importance of women's rights in a country where shocking abuses still endure. (...) These are unobjectionable remarks, and a point of view shared by likely everyone who crowded in to hear the American president speak. But don't expect Obama to share the same message with the United States' Saudi partners, whose cooperation on matters of counterterrorism in the Middle East and energy policy are vital for Washington's interests.

Thousands of Saudis have poured into the palace of King Salman who acceded the throne after the death of his half-brother Abdullah last week.  But thousands of others have pledged their allegiance to the new ruler online, taking advantage of social media networks.

An avalanche of criticism of FC Bayern Muenchen, a leading soccer brand and Germany's most successful club, for playing a commercially driven friendly against Saudi Arabia's FC Al Hilal amid a crackdown on dissent in the kingdom ... highlights the increasing risk autocratic Gulf states run in employing the sport to polish tarnished images and project soft power.

The Charlie Hebdo murders have reinforced anti-Muslim and anti-Arab sentiment that even when invisible always simmers just beneath the surface of public opinion in much of the West.

Saudi Arabia has a unique approach of vacillating between using hard and soft power. This approach is directly linked to Saudi Arabia being one of the wealthiest nations in the world, the home of the Islamic religion, and possessing vast oil reserves.

France and Saudi Arabia signed an agreement on Tuesday for Paris to provide the Lebanese army with $3 billion worth of weapons paid for by Riyadh, the French foreign minister said.