ABU DHABIÑ Saudi Arabia asserts that defense relations with the
United States remains excellent.
Saudi Defense Minister Prince Sultan Bin Abdul Aziz said there has been
no change in defense ties with Washington. Sultan termed those relations
excellent and said they were not reviewed during the current Middle
East tour by U.S. Vice President Richard Cheney.
The assertion by Sultan came as Saudi opposition sources said the United
States was preparing to withdraw troops from the kingdom. The
Washington-based Saudi Information Agency said the Pentagon was removing
troops and assets from Saudi Arabia to Qatar. The opposition news agency
said this included the relocation of the U.S. air command and control center
at the Prince Sultan Air Base.
The assertion was denied by Cheney during his tour of the Persian Gulf
over the weekend. The vice president said Washington did not plan to move
troops or equipment from the Prince Sultan base.
For his part, Sultan also rejected the prospect of a downgrade of U.S.
relations amid Washington's criticism of human rights in the kingdom. The
State Department has issued a report that scored the Saudi use of capital
punishment and the failure to protect the rights of the accused.
"We are applying Islamic law," Sultan said.
The prince also denied reports that he will tour former East Bloc states
in an attempt to forge Saudi defense relations. At the same time, Crown
Prince Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz has accepted an invitation to visit the
United States.
Earlier, Abdullah was said to have told Cheney that the United States
would not be able to use the kingdom as a base to strike Iraq. The
Riyad-based Al Watan daily quoted Saudi officials as saying Abdullah warned
that a war against Iraq would be "catastrophic" for the security of the Gulf
region.
