The summit logo reflected those ambitions, depicting a new dawn breaking and the three words: stability, growth, jobs.
The west has long viewed the Saudis as a pillar of stability in an unruly region.
Far from bolstering stability, Saudi policy actively works against western attempts to end the standoff with non-Arab Iran – still the natural regional partner for London and Washington that it was before the 1979 revolution.
This stability is vital in attracting the business and international investment that delivers growth and jobs, and which keeps long-term interest rates low.
But their search for stability was still futile.
The point I made was in the long run a free and vigorous media are good for democracy, are good for security, and are good for stability.
"The problem is that who you are in relation to the world changes," says Lee of this newfound stability.
It goes on to warn: In addition, house prices have increased rapidly and may create risks to financial stability in the case of a downward adjustment".
There is recognition that change is best accompanied by stability, and democracy only works if debate is conducted in a reasonable atmosphere where words can be bold, even harsh, but not inflammatory.
(Not a single economist in a recent poll thought this would help ensure price stability or improve the employment picture for the average American).
Mainstream Chinese society holds economic growth and social stability as sacrosanct, and many mainlanders wonder why a city which benefits tremendously from its mainland ties would turn on its most important benefactor.
