Saudi Arabia: sensitivities regarding representation in UK media

This file relates to the sensitivities of Saudi Arabia to its representation in the media in the UK. It contains correspondence concerning:

• The attitude of the Saudis to the BBC, with HMG’s hope that relations are repairing with the invitation by the Saudi Ambassador to the BBC Chairman Stuart Young
• The plans of the News of the World to run an article on the Saudi Royal Family in the near future
• The history of HMG’s representations to the Saudis over the film Death of a Princess, in the context of recent media problems with India
• The anti-Western sentiments in the Jeddah newspaper Arab News
• The Saudi offence at an interview given by Julia Miles to the BBC’s Sixty Minutes
• The proposed visit to Saudi Arabia by the BBC’s Newsnight for a programme on the military balance in the Gulf
• An article in the Sunday Times on the Rolls Royce sales to Saudi Arabia, and the Saudis’ wish to set the record straight.