A difficult Saudi- American summit today
Saudi Arabia-USA, Politics, 4/25/2002

The Saudi crown prince Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz today will hold difficult talks with the US President George Bush on the Middle East crisis. The Saudi crown prince ( 79 year old) is intended to maintain a just settlement in the Middle East.

The Saudi crown prince who pursues a new policy in the foreign policy area refused to meet with President Bush in June 2001 as he stopped in Washington in a tour in which he visited several countries.

An Arab diplomat in Riyadh said that the Saudi crown prince Abdullah "is an Arab nationalist and the strongest opposition for any normalization with the Hebrew state." The aggressions of September 11 in which Saudi citizens took place, had negative consequences on the relations between Riyadh and Washington. In February this year, the Saudi crown prince proposed a peace initiative adopted by the Arab League in Beirut by the end of last month provided for establishing normal relations with Israel for its withdrawal from all occupied Arab territories in 1967. At a growing pressure from the public opinion provoked by the pictures of massacres against the Palestinians, the Saudi authorities warned Washington from that it will loose its credibility and threaten its interests in the Arab world.

Since he assumed power in Saudi Arabia, the Saudi crown prince showed opposition to Washington's policy towards Israel but this was without affecting the basics of the Saudi foreign policy, including the strategic alliance with the US.

The Saudi crown prince, the main official responsible for closeness with Iran, which was enhanced by the visit of the Iranian President Muhammad Khatami to Saudi Arabia in 1999 and by signing a security cooperation agreement. The Saudi crown prince has recently reached out to President Saddam Hussein during a meeting with the deputy chairman of the revolution leadership council Izzat Ibrahim on the sideline of the Arab summit which was held in Beirut.

The Saudi crown prince decided to pursue a policy of tightening the spending in order to halt expenditure.

The Saudi crown prince Abdullah was born in Riyadh in 1923. He is the 13th son for King Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz Bin Saud, the founder of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. He has not been known on the political scene despite the fact he assumed power since 1962 as a commander for the national guards. The crown prince joined the government in 1975 in his being as the second deputy for the prime minister. In 1982 he became a crown prince. He is known for his love of hunting and horsemanship.

Previous Stories:
  On Saudi crown prince's starts visit to Washington   (4/24/2002)
  Saudi crown prince considers postponing visit to USA   (4/19/2002)
  Saudi - USA summit to discuss Israeli aggression, Iraq and terrorism   (4/18/2002)

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