DAMASCUS, 6 June — Crown Prince Abdullah, deputy premier and commander of the National Guard, opened talks with Syrian President Bashar Assad here yesterday on the Palestinian issue and strengthening Arab unity and solidarity.
Prince Abdullah’s talks with Bashar covered ways of boosting relations, the Middle East situation and major global developments. The Saudi crown prince arrived earlier in the day on the first leg of a four-nation tour that will also take him to Germany, Sweden and Morocco.
“The talks in Damascus will cover the brutal Israeli aggression against the Palestinian people and Israeli threats against Syria and other Arab states,” a Saudi official said before the talks began. “The peace process is currently facing great danger because of the anti-peace policies of (Israeli Prime Minister Ariel) Sharon and his government,” the official added. He said Prince Abdullah would renew Saudi support for Syria “in its efforts to retrieve its occupied lands” and stress the importance of achieving Arab solidarity.
Syria’s SANA news agency quoted Information Minister Muhammad Omran as stressing “the positive impact of Saudi-Syrian relations on the Arab nation.” Both Riyadh and Damascus “refuse to give away an inch of occupied Arab territory and are seeking a just and comprehensive peace based on international principles guaranteeing the return of all occupied Arab territories and the establishment of a Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital,” he said.
The Saudi ambassador in Damascus, Bakr Abdullah ibn Bakr, said that in talks with Assad, his country would strongly back the Arab cause against Israel. Prince Abdullah is accompanied on his two-day visit here by Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal, Commerce Minister Osama Faqeeh, Petroleum and Mineral Resources Minister Ali Al-Naimi, Finance and National Economy Minister Ibrahim Al-Assaf and Industry and Electricity Minister Hashem Yamani.
Prince Abdullah will leave here today for a three-day visit to Germany. He will hold talks with Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder on the Middle East and a broad range of economic issues.
