Cheney encounters new Saudi rebuffs

MSNBC.Com ^ | 3/16/2002 | MSNBC NEWS SERVICES

[Bobby777]

March 16 — Vice President Dick Cheney, in Saudi Arabia on perhaps the most diplomatically significant and challenging visit of his 11-nation Mideast tour, encountered new rebuffs Saturday from Saudi leaders — who have reservations about U.S. plans to move militarily against Iraq — even as he conveyed growing American interest in a Saudi-sponsored Middle East peace initiative.

AT KING ABDUL Aziz International Airport, Cheney was met by Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah. The two stood at attention as a Saudi band that included bagpipes played the national anthems of both countries.
Cheney then had an audience with King Fahd at the city’s conference palace and planned to meet again with Abdullah, including a dinner session.
The top missions of Cheney’s swing through the Middle East were coming together in the Saudi meetings.
Cheney met with Saudi leaders who have expressed sharp reservations about any U.S. plan to move militarily against Iraq. Each of the six countries he has visited in the region so far has opposed a tougher stand on Iraq.
The Saudi rejection was expected and telegraphed well in advance. But it was significant because of the importance the United States places on the role of Saudi Arabia in the region.
The Bush administration believes a close working relationship with the Saudis is central to anything America hopes to achieve in the troubled Islamic world.
Indeed, American hopes of striking Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein have long hinged on the Muslim kingdom.
It has been key to wiping out support for the al-Qaida terorrist network implicated in the Sept. 11 attacks on the United States. Now, its influence with the Arab world is also central to taming the Israeli-Palestinian crisis.
Both Abdullah and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, who met with Cheney earlier this week, say Saddam is close to allowing in United Nations weapons inspectors — a step Arabs are pushing for to avert U.S. military action.
But merely allowing inspectors may not be enough, unless they are given full access, a senior Bush administration official told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.
Cheney has faced challenges to the U.S. agenda against terrorism. Every Middle Eastern country he has visited so far — Jordan, Egypt, Yemen, Oman, and now the United Arab Emerites and Saudi Arabia — has rejected proposals to confront Iraq militarily.

BARRAGE OF INTERVIEWS

Just before Cheney’s visit, Saudi leaders engaged in a barrage of television interviews emphasizing the Saudi position. In two interviews, Abdullah stressed the importance of a unified Iraq.
In an interview broadcast Friday, he opposed U.S. strikes against Iraq. “I do not believe it is in the United States’ interests, or the interests of the region, or the world’s interest, for the United States to do so,” he told ABC News. “And I don’t believe it will achieve the desired result.”
“The same applies to Iran,” he said. Abdullah warned that the United States cannot overthrow the Iraqi leader, and that any strike against Iraq would just increase anti-U.S. feeling in the region.
In a separate interview with ABC, Saudi Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal said that if the United States decide to attack Iraq, it could not use Saudi bases for its attacks. Saudi Arabia has publicly denied the United States use of its bases to launch direct attacks against Afghanistan, and Abdullah criticized the U.S. bombing there.
Saudi Arabia’s offer of bases to U.S. soldiers and warplanes was a major factor in the 1991 Gulf War. Bush has lumped Iraq, Iran and North Korea together in what he calls an “axis of evil” threatening to spread weapons of mass destruction to terrorists.
Cheney’s priorities included pressing Saudi Arabia to work to quash financial backing among its people for al-Qaida.
Despite the disagreement over Iraq, the American-Saudi relationship has improved in the last few weeks, after suffering some strains after Sept. 11.
The American public’s suspicion that Saudis hadn’t cracked down on fund-raising for Islamic extremists was a source of tension after the Sept. 11 attacks. Of the 19 hijackers, 15 were Saudis.
Both sides clearly want the relationship on track. Abdullah has made a point of saying in recent interviews — rarely granted before now — that Saudis abhor terrorism and want good U.S. relations.

MIDEAST CONFLICT A PRIORITY

Israel’s military offensive against the Palestinians has put the Mideast conflict foremost in the minds of many Arab leaders Cheney has met on his trip.
In Jeddah, Cheney plans to discuss the Saudi proposal for Arabs to normalize relations with Israel in exchange for Israeli withdrawal from lands captured in the 1967 Mideast war.
Prince Abdullah, Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler since King Fahd suffered a stroke in 1995, said in the ABC interview that most Arab states had agreed on his initiative, which he intends to propose at an Arab summit later this month in Beirut.
President Bush’s administration has welcomed the initiative, but Riyadh has raised questions by appearing to soften its proposal, calling more recently for “full peace” with Israel, which some view as less bold than normalization.
Prince Abdullah said he envisioned “normal relations” with Israel, including an exchange of ambassadors, resumption of trade and diplomatic recognition. “What I said was normal relations, just as we have with other countries,” he said.
Cheney is to visit Israel later in his trip, where he will speak with the country’s leaders and compare notes with U.S. Mideast envoy Anthony Zinni.

UAE WANTS MORE U.S. INVOLVEMENT

Cheney touched down in Saudi Arabia after talks in the United Arab Emirates.
UAE President Sheikh Zaid bin Sultan al-Nahayan called for “a more active (U.S.) role in seeking to achieve peace in the Middle East,” Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Sheikh Hamdan bin Zaid al-Nahayan, told the official WAM news agency.
Washington, the Gulf Arab state’s key Western ally, should “seek to stop the grave and continued Israeli aggression against the Palestinian people,” he said
Sheikh Zaid told Cheney he opposed directing a military strike against Iraq and urged “prudence for (safeguarding) the interests of America, the region and the world,” he said.
Cheney, who spent Friday on a U.S. aircraft carrier watching jets roar off to bomb Afghanistan, started his day on Saturday with a visit to the Grand Mosque in Muscat, Oman.
“This is not a war against Islam,” a senior Cheney adviser had said on Thursday, describing one of the messages Cheney hopes to send during his Mideast swing.
Cheney removed his shoes and was escorted through the mosque by two men in traditional Omani white robes, with ornamental daggers at their belts.
But in an apparent reminder of anti-American sentiment in the region Cheney is visiting and the reason for heavy security during his trip, a Yemeni threw a hand grenade at the U.S. Embassy in Sana’a on Friday, a day after Cheney visited Yemen.
A security official in Sana’a said the Yemeni was quickly arrested and there were no injuries.

The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.

[Bobby777]

there's nothing like fair-weather friends ...

[Bobby777]

how does one correct a keyword which was not spelled properly? ... just add the correct one?

[My Favorite Headache]

Saudi is just filled with scum.

[irish_lad]

This one is a bit tough. On one hand, one would like to tell the Saudis don't come crying to us if Saddam attacks them; however, we import 25% of our oil from the House of Saud.

My guess is that this a public diplomatic move designed to appease the radicals in Saudi Arabia, but privately the Saudis want Saddam out as much as anyone. I'd bet money that privately, each of the governments Cheney has visited is behind the US effort to oust Saddam.

[Bobby777]

yep ... the Saudis are certainly not our friends ... and with Mecca and Medina located within their borders, it's no surprise ...

[Free the USA]

Check the Bump List folders for articles related to and descriptions of the above topic(s) or for other topics of interest.

[Bobby777]

yes the Saudis don't like us ... but I'm sure they have no love lost on Saddam either ...

[RamsNo1]

While the Saudi government is rebuffing the US, why doesn't it also look into its own practices of letting innocent young girls die in fires because they weren't wearing proper headresses? How come no major press coverage on that story?

[ConsistentLibertarian]

Problem is, the US would need public help: air bases, permission to use Saudi airspace for the offensive, etc. And that's not counting the added political costs if the entire Arab world is publically condemning "American Agression". That just feeds the beast.

[ConsistentLibertarian]

"why doesn't it also look into its own practices of letting innocent young girls die in fires because they weren't wearing proper headresses? How come no major press coverage on that story?" Answer: Liberal bias in the media. It explains _everything_. Don't ask how. Just repeat the words and nod knowingly.

[bourbon]

Saudi Arabia has publicly denied the United States use of its bases to launch direct attacks against Afghanistan, and Abdullah criticized the U.S. bombing there.

personally, I don't give a good g*damn what the Saudis think. I wish there was some good way we could replace the despicable two-faced House of Saud, either with their precursors the Hashemites or hell give the whole country to Turkey. The Turks would straighten the place out.

[antaresequity]

Cheney removed his shoes and was escorted through the mosque by two men in traditional Omani white robes, with ornamental daggers at their belts.

That to me was a stupid move. I wouldn't trust the Sauds to this extent. Sadat's [Egypt] death came at the hands of his own [infiltrators]. I think treachory is part and parcel to Middle Eastern affairs. Just seems like a really stupid thing to do.

[RamsNo1]

It always amazes me that I hear that terrorism is just an off-shoot for those who feel deprived and dispossessed in the world. We also hear how it is usually the fault of the US who isn't doing a good enough job at spreading the wealth around to poor countries. Well, when I see the Arab sheikhs walking around their palaces of gold and away from the commoners in their own country, I just want to puke. Bin Laden should be bombing the palaces in his own country, not ours.

[Recovering_Democrat]

Cheney has faced challenges to the U.S. agenda against terrorism. Every Middle Eastern country he has visited so far — Jordan, Egypt, Yemen, Oman, and now the United Arab Emerites and Saudi Arabia — has rejected proposals to confront Iraq militarily.

Some random thoughts here:
1. The U.S. is facing "public" challenges...what are these Arab leaders saying in private? I can appreciate their public statements--they've got some whacko elements in their countries, and, well, they've got to maintain some kind of face. Not unlike the 'HOLE when he says he supports the President, but you know REALLY he's saying that not to anger America.

I wouldn't be surprised if they're telling the VEEP something like, "Make the strike into Iraq as quick as possible, get rid of the murderer, and we'll issue a statement of 'regret' over your actions, and we can get on with the business of selling you Yanks more oil."

2. Do the Saudis really WANT Iraq to be a participant in the Middle East business?? After all, if Iraq gets back in the business of selling oil, won't that take away from some of their market share?

3. How serious can they be about not wiping out Hussein? They know he'll come after them first chance he gets.

4. If the public statements coming from these government DO accurately reflect their view, then this Arab resistance to fighting terror should be recognized by the anti-Israel lobby in this nation. While the Arabs did give tacit support to our actions against the Taliban, they also must recognize the fact that the United States will not tolerate a regime that is bent on creating weaponry to harm her citizens and her allies. PERIOD. This is a new world, Saudi Arabia et al....this is not the Bill Clinton administration. Get used to it.

5. FINALLY, if this world situation isn't enough to convince the 'HOLE and his Senate illegit majority of the need for ENERGY INDEPENDENCE then NOTHING will, and the Republicans and others who love freedom must point this out. ANWR holds 25 years of Saudi imports--and I believe Russia has a lot of petrol under her fields, too. Wouldn't it be nice to have some business leverage with the sheiks??

But lil' Tommy and the John "BIG HAIR" Kerry, and Ted "The Swimmer" Kennedy and the nutcases in their party are dead set against helping America. They'd rather have an issue like high gas prices to hurt the President. We must achieve a Republican majority in the Senate--a commanding one, to offset a possible Chaffee/McLame party switch, and get our nation back on the road to freedom.

Sorry for the length of the post.

[mrustow]

See also:

Land for Peace -- Again! The Saudi Sucker Punch

[Lent]

You mean their not impressed with that Security Council resolution about the Pal State and a reference to their peace proposal?

[Uncle Miltie]

Sometimes I wish we'd just use the bases we built in Saudi even though they refuse. Let's see if their effeminate ineffectual military can stop us. When we're done with Iraq, and have a Democracy installed there, we'll leave Saudi for awhile......and come back a few years later from the North!

[montag813]

public diplomatic move designed to appease the radicals in Saudi Arabia

"Appease"...huh? It's no wonder the French love Arabs so much.

In fact they have similar "winning" percentages in wars this century (0-3)