The American foreign policy in the first half of the 20th century had won great plaudits and respect thanks for its commitment to the principle of non-interference in the affairs of other countries, and its support for the freedom and independence of peoples, as contained in the Wilson Principles.

This policy had contributed to the demise of the British Empire, whose colonial area covered 24 percent of the globe and nearly 23 percent of the world’s population in 1920. An evidence of this was the United States’ provision of a loan to Britain after World War II, in accordance with Article Seven of the Lend-and Lease Act that the US Senate passed on Oct. 23, 1941, and was conditional on giving up any colonial economic regimes after the end of the war.

The states that make up the United States of America also increased their impressive success related to performance of their economy, science and technology, which enabled them to acquire pioneering role and global leadership. That success would not have been achieved if US domestic policy had not sought to consolidate its stability and internal national security by uprooting all hotbeds of strife, chaos and turmoil on its soil.

US President Woodrow Wilson, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, in his State of the Union address on Dec. 7, 1915, urged the American Congress to adopt the Sedition Act saying, “there are citizens who sought to corrupt the power and reputation of our government; destroy our industries and smash our policies to serve foreign conspiracies.”

He stressed the importance of enacting this law because it represents a salvation of the nation’s honor and self-respect, and calls for the need to punish those who perpetrate disloyalty and conspiracies against the government aimed at serving interests alien to US interests, and warned against unfaithful Americans who seek to put the poison of disloyalty into the arteries of the nation, with a demand “to get rid of them.”

The Sedition Act of 1918 was passed, after amendments were introduced to the Espionage Act of 1917, and included criminalizing behaviors such as expressing opinion aimed at directing blame to the government or the war effort. America, under President Roosevelt, also adopted the Alien Registration Act, popularly known as the Smith Act that made it a criminal offense to advocate the violent overthrow of the government or to organize or be a member of any group or society devoted to such advocacy.

According to that law, 11 leaders of the Communist Party were convicted in 1949. We also do not forget in this regard the Patriot Act, which was enacted after the Sept. 11 terror attacks, and its broad foundations that enable the government to monitor and eavesdrop on communications inside and outside its borders.

This honorable record of USA is what encouraged King Abdul Aziz, founder of modern Saudi Arabia, to choose partnership and cooperation with it by granting the concession to explore and produce oil in the Kingdom commercially to an American company in 1931, and to sign a cooperation agreement between the two countries in 1933, in addition to meeting with President Roosevelt in 1945. These strong bilateral relations between the two countries have lasted for decades, and are based on respect, mutual cooperation and common interests.

Just as the world appreciated and lauded the American policy previously, it is surprised and strongly condemns now it’s disgraceful behavior that highlights it as an empire with a colonial policy that seeks to maximize its national interests and drain the wealth of others, in contrast to the principles adopted by the honorable American political leaders in the earlier period.

Now, we see the US seeks to interfere in the internal affairs of other countries and undermine their sovereignty, stability and national security under the slogans of freedom, justice, democracy, human rights and the fight against terrorism. The wise politicians in America must quickly correct the matter, and not be tempted by the drumming of an American group of agents for their reckless policies.

In response to the accusations against the Saudi leadership, I would tell, as a Saudi citizen, the following to the American administration, which sought that the bilateral relationship with Saudi Arabia would be cooperation and partnership in a way reflecting the values of the USA:

1. It’s a proven truth for those who realize facts that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, as a homeland and leadership, is a centuries-old lofty entity that cannot be underestimated. Its foundations are based on a distinguished Islamic position as the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, to which more than 1.5 billion Muslims aspire for, with a reliable constitution drawn from the Holy Qur’an and Sunnah. The Kingdom fosters solid Arab-Islamic values, heritage and traditions, and harmonious social fabric of an ambitious people who are loyal to their leadership, which has the ability to play a pivotal role in international relations in the political and economic fields.

2. The Islamic religion and the tolerant teachings of the Shariah represent the strong social and political bond for our society, and it cannot be compromised at all. These teachings are based on giving priority to the rights of the group or the nation over the limited individual rights, which are always a starting point for sedition and corruption.

3. The leadership of Saudi Arabia is well aware that the well-being and future of its homeland are the pillars of continued building in pursuit of the desires of its people and the guarantee of its stability and national security. Accordingly, they do not dream that the Kingdom, its leadership and people, will either bow to political blackmail or accept any encroachment on its sovereignty, leadership and wealth, and forget its values, heritage, traditions, sovereignty and legitimate rights.

4. If you are sincere in the continuation of cooperation and fruitful partnership, you must realize and accept the diversity and difference in the values and foundations that govern us and respect the religious, cultural and civilizational characteristics of the peoples.

5. Just as your national security is important to you and you adopted and took the necessary measures and steps to protect it, it is our right and responsibility to take what is necessary to protect our national security, and hence there should not be any double standards.

Historian Antony G. Hopkins noted in his book “American empire: A global history” that “the failure to appreciate the fundamental change in the conditions in which power is exercised, and the changing nature of power itself, carries enormous consequences with regard to order and chaos in the world.”