Saudi Arabia refuses its territories to be used to strike Iraq
Saudi Arabia-USA, Politics, 3/18/2002

The Saudi daily al-Watan issued on Sunday said that Saudi Arabia informed the US administration its rejection to permit the American forces to use its territories as a starting point to strike Iraq or any other Arab or Islamic state.

In its Sunday's issue the paper added that this Saudi position was conveyed to the US Vice President Dick Cheney during his meeting on Saturday in Jeddah with the Saudi King Fahd Bin Abdul Aziz and his crown prince Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz.

The paper added quoting a well-informed Saudi source that crown prince Abdullah explained to Cheney that striking Iraq at the time being means a catastrophe due to its expected implications. A matter which constitutes a threat to the security of the region especially as information are available, on Baghdad's readiness to accept the return back of UN inspectors.

The paper explained that Riyadh sees the importance of intensifying international efforts in order to implement UN resolutions concerned by Iraq.

According to the same source, the paper indicated that the Saudi crown prince urged the American administration to work in order to fix the basics of stability in the Middle East through pressuring Israel in order to halt its aggressions against the Palestinian people, to establish a Palestinian state with Jerusalem as a capital, on the ground that this would prove the extent of the credibility of the American position and its seriousness to achieve a just and comprehensive peace in the Middle East. Al-Watan said that crown prince Abdullah said to the American Vice President that Saudi Arabia is against terrorism, but it is not with the expansion of the war against terrorism outside the border of Afghanistan.

Previous Stories:
  O'Neill cites U.S.-Saudi action against terror   (3/12/2002)
  Saudi Arabia denies to be excluded from the American allies list to fighting terrorism   (3/7/2002)
  Saudi crown prince confers with US congress delegation   (3/7/2002)

Please add a link on your webiste pointing to ArabicNews.com and bookmark ArabicNews.com & subscribe to our daily email news bulletin.

Search