I will always serve my country in any capacity, but I'm very happy with what I'm doing right now.
— Al-Waleed bin Talal
Well, it's very clear that the Arab population is rising because they'd like to have a say in the running of their affairs, running of their government, and this is very legitimate.
I definitely believe that the so-called American decline is greatly exaggerated.
Most governments are pragmatic, most people are logical. There are pockets of extremism in Israel, in the U.S. and in the Muslim world. But we have to fight them with reason, with logic and with compassion.
Some countries, like Saudi Arabia, where the population growth is very high, whereby you don't have the mortgage low yet. Still the demand outstrips supply by much.
But each country has to advance and move at its own speed.
The legacy of Steve Jobs and the strength of Steve Jobs is that he established a company that's clearly firing on all cylinders and clicking very well.
Well, clearly Apple is a role model of the American innovation whereby it produced all these products - iPod, iPhone, iPad - that are really now dominating all the technology arena in the world.
I'm telling you, you can't compare Saudi Arabia to other countries.
The lesson is that, No. 1, this management has to be at the highest class possible. No. 2, they have to have a succession plan.
In Riyadh, there's going to be a huge project that will house at least 12,000 units with inhabitants of approximately 150,000 people. It's like a city within a city.
I'm not panicking, and I'm not scared, I've been through the Gulf War, the Asia crisis, and the Russian crisis.
My wheels are running. My investments are local, regional and international.
You know, in Saudi Arabia, there is a body of 40 people - 34 people exactly, that once the succession comes, they will meet and they will elect a king in there.
It is very clear that the Republicans do not want to raise taxes.
Our Palestinian brethren continue to be slaughtered at the hands of Israelis while the world turns the other cheek.
Those people behind the mosque have to respect, have to appreciate and have to defer to the people of New York. The wound is still there. Just because the wound is healing you can't say, 'Let's just go back to where we were pre-9/11.
Clearly, as a CEO, you have other functions that are managed by other people.
King Abdullah is a reformer.
Well, you know, News Corp is the only real media global - that has a global presence that's involved in TV production, in movies, in publishing, in newspapers, digital media, et cetera. So for a company like that to function, clearly it does not depend only on Rupert Murdoch or James Murdoch.
You cannot play with fire.
The issue of Palestine has been there since more than 60 years. But more important since 1967 when the war was, ended in the defeat of some Arab countries.
Ethics to me is very important.
So, if you look at what's common among some of the companies I have, including the Four Seasons, NewsCorp, George V, the Plaza, these are all irreplaceable brands in their own fields.
We're getting hurt, but I'm a long-term investor.
If I'm going to do something, I do it spectacularly or I don't do it at all.
My own center, my Kingdom Center, which is the highest priced tower in Saudi Arabia, was vacated twice because of terrorist attacks, terrorist threats.
The potential for Twitter is spectacular and great.
I believe the government of the United States should re-examine its policies in the Middle East and adopt a more balanced stance toward the Palestinian cause.
I own almost 100 hotels in North America. Some of them are only in management, but some of them we have some small stakes in them.
Actually, King Abdullah, under his supervision and guidance, has established a dialogue in Saudi Arabia whereby all the population, whether Shiite or Sunnis from north, south, west or east, they can get together and exchange their views.
I believe Twitter, right now, is just finishing the venture capital phase, getting into a maturity level.
No company should depend on one person no matter how that person is smart or genius, whether it's Apple or News Corp, or Citibank or any other company in the world.
Saudi Arabia has stability. The social contract and the political contract between the king and the rulers and the royal family and the ruled people in Saudi Arabia is very strong and the bondage is so solid.
If the United States has to accept the U.N. resolutions, we have to generalize it across the board. We can't just pick and choose where we impose and accept the U.N. resolution and don't accept them. U.N. Resolution 242 is very clear and states very clearly that Israel has to go back to the borders of the pre-war of 1967.
You know, Saudi Arabia has a lot of poverty also. Regardless about what you hear about the viceroy and people being rich, et cetera.
One of my biggest personal holdings is Rotana. That company has a very dominant force in the Middle East. It has around 45% of all the movie industry and around 75% of all the music.
Nowadays, anyone who cannot speak English and is incapable of using the Internet is regarded as backward.
