HSBC executive and former UK ambassador to Saudi says 'the Arabic mind is empty' in speech to students

A top HSBC executive and the UK’s former ambassador to Saudi Arabia was at the centre of a racism storm on Friday after claims he told Oxford students that the “Arabic mind is empty”, The Mail on Sunday reported.

Speaking at a dinner at the University of Oxford, Sir Sherard Cowper-Coles, who is HSBC’s head of public affairs, apparently declared to a shocked audience that “the Arabic mind is empty compared to the Chinese”.

Cowper-Coles also reportedly told the audience that he wished he’d learned to speak Chinese instead of Arabic because China is apparently “more interesting”.

The comments made about Arabs by Cowper-Coles came during an “off-the-cuff” speech he made welcoming students to the university. Several attendees of the dinner apparently reached out to The Mail on Sunday to condemn his comments.

The diplomat also recently hit headlines in his capacity as a lobbyist for China, after he called the UK government “weak” for following the US in cutting back dealings with Beijing over its extensive human rights abuses.

Cowper-Coles was Britain’s ambassador to Saudi Arabia between 2003-2006, with the Saudis apparently fondly nicknaming him ‘Abu Henry’, after his oldest son. 

The former diplomat denied accusations that his comments were racist, saying they were “selective comments, which have been taken out of context, were personal remarks made at a private event to raise the understanding of China”, as quoted by The Mail on Sunday. He added that his comments did not represent the views of HSBC. 

When The New Arab reached out to HSBC for comment we were directed to Mr Cowper-Coles' statement that his comments were not reflective of HSBC. However, HSBC did not themselves wish to make any comment on Mr Cowper-Coles or his views.