Saudi Arabia’s king names prince as new foreign minister

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates – Saudi King Salman has named a new foreign minister for the kingdom amid a series of royal orders.

The king late Wednesday night named Prince Faisal bin Farhan as foreign minister, replacing Ibrahim al-Assaf. Al-Assaf had served for less than a year as foreign minister.

Prince Faisal had been serving as ambassador to Germany and has business experience. He also served as an adviser to King Salman’s son, the powerful Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

The state-run Saudi Press Agency said al-Assaf would serve as a minister of state.

The decision comes as Saudi Arabia tries to repair damage done to its relationship with the West after the assassination and dismemberment of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi last year and its ongoing war in Yemen.