Meanwhile the international opposition to an attack on Iraq mounds....in this interview, prince Saud dispels the notion that SA privately supports the administration in this adventure
Al
Saudis: Don't Attack Iraq From Here
Wed Aug 7,11:39 AM ET
By DONNA ABU-NASR, Associated Press Writer
Saudi Arabia has made clear to Washington — publicly and privately — that
the U.S. military will not be allowed to use the kingdom's soil in any way for an
attack on Iraq, Foreign Minister Prince Saud said Wednesday.
Saud said in an interview with The Associated Press that his country opposes
any U.S. operation against Iraq "because we believe it is not needed, especially
now that Iraq is moving to implement United Nations ( news - web sites)
resolutions."
"We have told them we don't (want) them to use Saudi grounds" for any attack
on Iraq, he said.
With speculation building about possible U.S. military action. Iraq last week
invited U.N. chief weapons inspector Hans Blix to Baghdad for talks that could
lead to a resumption of the inspections after more than 3 years.
President Bush ( news - web sites) has said he is committed to a regime
change in Iraq, and Washington has dismissed the Blix invitation as a ploy.
In a letter replying to the Iraqi offer, U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan ( news -
web sites) told Baghdad it must accept the Security Council's terms for the
return of weapons inspectors.
Under U.N. Security Council resolutions, sanctions imposed after Iraq's 1990
invasion of Kuwait cannot be lifted until U.N. inspectors certify that Iraq's
biological, chemical, and nuclear weapons have been destroyed along with the
long-range missiles to deliver them.
The United States reportedly has quietly moved munitions, equipment and
communications gear to the al-Udeid Air Base in Qatar from Saudi Arabia in
recent months, concerned the kingdom would not lend its full support to military
action.
Arab nations uniformly have come out against a U.S. military campaign to oust
Saddam Hussein ( news - web sites), even though there is little love regionally
for the Iraqi leader. Most Arab nations joined the U.S.-led Gulf War ( news - web
sites) coalition that liberated Kuwait in 1991, with Saudi Arabia inviting U.S.
troops to the oil-rich kingdom to help defend it against Saddam's forces.
On Wednesday, Saud denied any speculation that Saudi Arabia might privately
support action to remove Saddam despite its public opposition.
He said the private line to Washington was no different from the public remarks:
"We couldn't have made our position more clear, our leaders have said this and
everybody responsible in the kingdom has said this."
"For the government of Iraq, the leadership of Iraq, any change that happens
there has to come from the Iraqi people. This is our attitude," Saud said.
Opposition to U.S. action against Iraq has also been growing more vocal in
Europe.
German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder this week came out against an attack.
In an interview published Wednesday, he said military action would wreck the
international coalition, throw the Mideast into turmoil and hurt the economy.
A government minister in Britain, a country seen as Bush's strongest supporter
against Iraq, suggested Baghdad's gesture to readmit inspectors could make
military action unnecessary.
While getting rid of Saddam is desired, "what is important is that we focus on
getting the inspectors in and we make sure that the threat of weapons of mass
destruction is dealt with," Foreign Office Minister Mike O'Brien said.
Meanwhile, the prince dismissed a flap over a briefing at the Pentagon ( news -
web sites) at which an analyst accused Saudi Arabia of supporting terrorism
and recommended to a policy group that Washington hand the kingdom an
ultimatum.
U.S. officials have since distanced themselves from the comments by the
analyst from the Rand think tank — but it revived sharp criticism of Saudi
Arabia, which some U.S. officials say has not done enough against terrorism.
Asked about the criticism, Saud said there were "individuals who have their
opinions about Saudi Arabia. We think they are based on false assumptions
and on untruths in most instances."
He said his country's 70-year-old relations with Washington remain solid. "From
our part and from the talks that we have had in the administration ... we have
seen no change in attitude toward Saudi Arabia," the prince said. |
