[Peace-discuss] saudi leaders say NO!

[Dlind49 at aol.com]

DUBAI (Nov. 3) - Saudi Arabia, a key U.S. regional ally, said on Sunday it 
would not allow the United States to use its facilities for any attack 
against neighboring Iraq even if a strike was sanctioned by the United 
Nations.

''We will abide by the decision of the United Nations Security Council and we 
will cooperate with the Security Council. But as to entering the conflict or 
using facilities... that is something else,'' Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal 
said.

''Our policy is that if the United Nations takes a decision on Chapter 7, it 
is obligatory on all signatories to cooperate but that is not to the extent 
of using facilities in the country or the military forces of the country,'' 
he told CNN.

Chapter 7 of the U.N. Charter makes it mandatory for member states to 
implement any measure immediately as part of international law.

The remarks were the strongest rejection by Saudi Arabia -- which was a 
launchpad for the U.S.-led 1991 Gulf War that drove Iraqi troops out of 
Kuwait after a seven-month occupation -- of any assistance to a possible U.S. 
attack on Iraq.

The rejection comes in the midst of strained relations between the strategic 
allies over last year's September 11 attacks on the United States, in which 
15 of the 19 men believed to be the suicide attackers were Saudis, and Saudi 
anger at what it sees as U.S. bias toward Israel in the Middle East conflict.

Saud said there was no crisis in ties between the U.S. and the kingdom, the 
largest oil exporter to the United States.

Washington could launch an attack on Iraq without using bases inside Saudi 
Arabia but the air campaign would be more difficult if it could not at least 
use Saudi air space.

Mary Matalin, counselor to U.S. Vice-President Dick Cheney, told CNN's ''Late 
Edition'' program following Saud's comments that the United States had many 
other allies it could depend on.

Asked if Saud's comments marked a serious military setback to any U.S.-led 
effort against Iraq, she said: ''We have many friends and allies in the 
region and we have many friends and allies around the world...We would never 
engage unless we were sure that we could get the job done well.''

White House spokesman Ari Fleischer told reporters aboard Air Force One as 
President George W. Bush flew to Illinois on a domestic political trip: ''I 
don't talk about operational issues or basing issues'' and declined further 
comment.

APPARENT SHIFT IN SAUDI POSITION

Prince Saud has in the past indicated the United States could use bases in 
Saudi Arabia for an attack on Iraq if it was sanctioned by the United 
Nations. It was not clear what prompted the apparent shift in the Saudi 
position.

Faced with Riyadh's possible refusal to be a launch pad for strikes on Iraq, 
the United States has poured $1.4 billion into expanding Qatar's Al Udeid 
facility into a major air base and military staging ground.

Washington has several Gulf bases, mainly in Bahrain, Kuwait and Saudi 
Arabia, and Qatar is increasingly becoming a key base for U.S. military 
operations in the region. The U.S. used Udeid base last year after Riyadh 
refused to let U.S. planes and troops heading to Afghanistan use its Prince 
Sultan base.

Gulf power Saudi Arabia and its tiny neighbor Qatar are currently locked in a 
diplomatic row over several issues including Doha's decision to allow U.S. 
access to Udeid base.

Western diplomats say Riyadh, which recalled its ambassador from Doha in 
September, was incensed at what it saw as Qatar's efforts to present itself 
as Washington's main regional ally, a role Saudi Arabia has had for decades.

Saud told CNN the kingdom wanted a political resolution to the Iraq crisis 
and that Baghdad had made a ''very clear and unambiguous promise'' to Arab 
states that it would abide by U.N. resolutions. ''We think the road is set 
for that.''

Washington wants to end Baghdad's alleged pursuit of weapons of mass 
destruction and has threatened military action. The United Nations is seeking 
a resolution to allow U.N. weapons inspectors back into Iraq after a 
four-year absence.

Iraq denies U.S. weapons charges and has agreed to the return of arms 
inspectors.

''Saudi Arabia's position is a position to support the political settlement 
of this issue because we think it is feasible,'' Saud said.

The oil-rich Gulf region is bristling with U.S. troops and weaponry, Saudi 
Arabia alone has 5,000 U.S. troops, and Washington has said it would require 
regional military help for any offensive against Iraq.

Saud said the Iraqi people should decide the fate of their president and 
warned against a long-term U.S. military presence in Iraq in the event of an 
attack. ''You can never make a permanent change through occupation by foreign 
forces,'' he said.  

Reut19:30 11-03-02