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Politics : Foreign Affairs Discussion Group -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Nadine Carroll who wrote (56166)	11/8/2002 8:10:48 AM
From: gamesmistress	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 281500

Should we also ignore what Prince Saud al-Faisal "says"? Jeez, listening to this guy is like listening to my mother - it's not what she says, it's what she means. :-/ gina@hislipssaynonowhilehiseyessayyesyes?.com Report: Saudis Undecided on U.S. Use of Air Bases Tue Nov 5, 6:42 AM ET WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia has not decided whether the United States would be allowed to use its airspace and air bases if it goes to war with Iraq, the Saudi foreign minister said in Tuesday's online edition of The New York Times. The newspaper said Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal sought to revise comments he made over the weekend. In an interview broadcast on CNN Sunday, Prince Saud said: "We will abide by the decision of the United Nations (news - web sites) Security Council, and we will cooperate with the Security Council. But as to entering the conflict or using facilities ... that is something else." According to the Times, the remarks caught Bush administration officials by surprise. U.S. officials conducted urgent consultations with Saudi officials Monday before publicly responding, the newspaper reported. At a briefing Monday, State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said that after looking at Prince Saud's remarks, and subsequent contacts between the United States and the Saudis, Washington did not conclude that Riyadh ruled out the use of Saudi bases. In a telephone interview with the Times, Prince Saud said there was a misunderstanding when he answered "no" when asked in the CNN interview if Saudi bases could be used in a military operation against Iraq. Prince Saud told the Times that Saudi Arabia would be obliged to "cooperate" with the United Nations if Iraq "refuses the implementation" of the United Nations resolutions "concerning inspections" of its programs for weapons of mass destruction. "But that does not mean we have to join the fighting, or indeed to leave our bases for use," Prince Saud told the newspaper. "This is a sovereign right of Saudi Arabia to decide when the time comes." When asked whether Crown Prince Abdullah had decided to support a U.S.-led military campaign, Prince Saud said he could not say more. The possibility of a U.S. attack on Iraq puts the Saudi government in a difficult position. It values its friendship with the United States but faces internal and regional opposition to an attack that could kill many Iraqi civilians.