RIYADH — Saudi Arabia's new foreign minister, a US-educated connoisseur of Washington's diplomatic scene and longtime adviser to the Kingdom's rulers, is an articulate spokesman for his country's new assertive approach to the Middle East's growing conflicts. A well-known figure in Washington government circles and on US television, Adel Al-Jubeir becomes the first non-royal in the job, succeeding Prince Saud Al-Faisal, who served for four decades and has been appointed a special envoy of King Salman. Jubeir, 53, is not only a prominent public face of Saudi diplomacy, but also an insider in Riyadh. As ambassador to Washington, he translated for former King Abdullah in meetings with US President Barack Obama and shuttled back and forth to the Kingdom regularly to brief the King in person. Jubeir was appointed an adviser to the royal court in 2005 and named ambassador to Washington in 2007, when he succeeded Prince Turki Al-Faisal, a former Saudi intelligence chief. Fluent in Arabic, English and German, Jubeir gained a bachelor's degree in political science and economics from the University of North Texas in 1982 and a master's in international relations from Georgetown in 1984. — Reuters
