Prince Talal bin Abdelaziz, a half-brother of King Abdullah, gave a rare interview to the Financial Times at his office in Riyadh on April 21. Prince Talal has no role in official decision making, but is one of the few royals to speak openly about the need for change in Saudi Arabia. Below is an edited version of the interview, which was given in Arabic to Abeer Allam, the FT’s Riyadh correspondent, and Andrew England, the FT’s Chief Middle East Correspondent.

FT: What do you think of the appointment of Prince Naif as a second deputy prime minister? How does the appointment impact the future of Saudi Arabia?