In an exclusive interview with ABC’s Barbara Walters, Crown Prince Abdullah, de-facto leader of Saudi Arabia, spoke about his recent peace plan, Saudi-US ties, the U.S. war on terror and Iraq. The interview was held at his palace in the Saudi city of Jeddah on Thursday.
Peace Plan
The Crown Prince told Walters that he was motivated to come up with his recent peace initiative “by a lack of justice in the world” as well as “by a lack of feeling for humanity and compassion” In addition, he wanted “to show the world that the Arab and Muslim people seek peace”.
When asked if the proposal, which called for "full normalization" of relations with Israel if it returned to its 1967 borders includes within it an exchange of ambassadors, resumption of trade and full diplomatic recognition, Abdullah replied positively. “I said … normal relations, just as we have with other countries” and conveyed he would present the proposal at the upcoming Arab Summit scheduled to be held in Beirut at the end of the month. The Crown Prince stated that most of the Arab countries due to attend the Summit agreed, including Syria.
Regarding the sensitive matters of the status of Jerusalem and the right of return for Palestinian refugees, the Crown Prince said those issues were included in the initiative, “They are central and essential issues. The details of any negotiations on refugees are up to the Israelis and Palestinians”.
Saudi-U.S. Ties
With regards to the relations between the United States and Saudi Arabia, the Prince termed them as “extremely positive”. “The ties between us are strong and have been for sixty years. Unfortunately, the events of September [11] have created doubts among some of our friends in the United States”.
War On Terror
As for the Saudi support for U.S. President George W. Bush’s war against terrorism, the Saudi Prince said that everyone supports the combat of terrorism, because “it involves humanity” and continued, “Our traditions and faith reject terrorism. The Koran teaches us that killing an innocent life is the same as killing all of humanity. We reject terrorism”.
He stated that on the onset of the crisis “criticism of the [Saudi] kingdom in the U.S. media surprised” the Saudis.
On the September 11 events, the Prince conveyed, “This was a shocking and horrible crime; it shocked the United States, Saudi Arabia and the rest of the world. We learned that our natures are different, that we respond to events in different ways”.
Regarding suspected terror mastermind and Al Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden, the Prince offered these remarks, “Bin Laden is no threat to us. When he was in the Sudan he was virtually nothing. When he moved to Afghanistan he became involved in the drug trade and his income increased. In my opinion, the drug trade allowed him to expand his influence and organization”.
Furthermore, Abdullah admitted he had met with Osama bin Laden once. “He came to my house with Hekmatyar and Sayyaf, two Afghan warlords who had a problem, and I made peace between them. This was a long time ago, at the time of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in the 1980s. I have never seen him since”.
Iraq
As world-wide speculation is growing over a possible US attack on Iraq, the Saudi Prince was asked for his views regarding the matter and said, “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. And I don't believe it will achieve the desired result. The same applies to Iran”.
He added that if Washington would attack Iraq “it would not serve America's interests or the interests of the world”. (Albawaba.com)
© 2002 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
