Saudi Arabia urges US effort to achieve peace, closer Iranian relations

Saudi Arabia has urged the international community, especially the US, to continue efforts to salvage the Middle East peace process and to move seriously towards ending Israel's violation of the peace process.

In a speech he delivered before the UN General Assembly and published by Saudi dailies on Wednesday, Saudi Deputy Foreign Minister Nizar Obeid Madani asserted the need to pressure Israel to implement all concerned international resolutions and to abide by the obligations and agreements reached in the context of the Middle East peace process negotiations.

He stressed that peace is a strategic Arab option, thereby there "should be a strong international position that forces Israel to fully implement the agreements it has signed with the Palestinians and to honor the bases on the ground of which the Middle East peace process was built as well as to get into serious negotiations on the Syrian and Lebanese tracks."

The Saudi deputy FM added that ending the state of tension and violence in south Lebanon is linked to Israel's withdrawal from south Lebanon and its western Bekaa according to UN resolution 425.

Saudi Arabia, on the other hand, reiterated its desire to strengthen relations with Iran. It expressed satisfaction with the positive indicators shown by the Iranian government in this respect.