JEDDAH, 13 May — Calling the economic boycott and oil embargo an ineffective weapon, Interior Minister Prince Naif yesterday urged Arab countries to mount a joint campaign to mobilize public opinion in the West, especially in the United States, in favor of their just causes.
"The economic boycott against the US will not be effective, because the volume of American imports is very small. Moreover, it’s better that we face the world with an economy as strong as possible," Prince Naif told the Kuwaiti-based As-Siyassah Arabic newspaper.
In a wide-ranging interview which covered Saudi-US relations, the visit of Crown Prince Abdullah, deputy premier and commander of the National Guard, to America and the Sept. 11 terror attacks, Prince Naif said the Zionists were trying their best to drive a wedge in relations between the Kingdom and the United States.
The interior minister reaffirmed that the Kingdom will continue its humanitarian aid to Palestinians.
"We give aid to every (Palestinian family) which has lost its breadwinner or whose houses have been destroyed in this asymmetrical war. We’ll continue to help these deserving people and we’ll not be afraid of Sharon’s pronouncements."
The prince pointed out that Saudi Arabia was sending its humanitarian aid to the Palestinians with the support of all countries.
"We send these relief supplies, including food and medicine, openly," he said, in reference to the relief convoys dispatched by Riyadh to Palestinian territories.
He said that Israel had exploited the Sept. 11 attacks to twist world opinion against Arabs and carry out its latest incursions into Palestinian Authority areas under the guise of fighting terror. He said the crown prince decided to visit the US to counter Israeli designs.
"Israel exploited the events to tarnish the image of Islam and distort the just demands of Arabs. It also tried with the help of its allies to distance America, the international decision making power, and even Western Europe, from the Kingdom, the cradle of Islam and the land of the two holy mosques."
Prince Naif said the crown prince’s peace initiative, which was endorsed by the Arab summit in Beirut, did not come on the spur of the moment or out of nothing. "Before the announcement of the initiative, the Saudi political leadership had discussed all aspects of the issue," he said.
"This is the first time since the formation of the Arab League that the Arab countries have unanimously approved such a peace initiative," he pointed out.
"Now the ball is not only in the court of Israel but also in the international court. The peace initiative has changed the picture as far as Arabs and Muslims are concerned. Ever since its creation, Israel has been telling the world that Arabs do not want peace and that only the state of Israel wanted peace... Now the world knows that it’s Israel which rejects peace."
Asked whether Prince Abdullah’s meetings with groups of Saudi intellectuals, Islamic scholars and high-ranking officials were aimed at promoting the peace initiative, the interior minister said: "By holding such meetings, the crown prince wanted to be more transparent to his people. He could have announced it by making a public speech like other leaders. But he met with people for transparency and exchanged views on Saudi-US ties, which were clouded by the Sept. 11 events."
He said Prince Abdullah had received a positive reply from US President George W. Bush for his strongly worded letter to the president on Saudi-US relations. He said Prince Abdullah’s recent visit to the US was a successful attempt to salvage Saudi-American relations.
Prince Naif underlined the importance of correcting the wrong notions among Americans against the Arabs and Muslims in the US, adding that a joint effort was required to realize this goal.
The Sept. 11 events had no negative effect on the Kingdom’s domestic front, the interior minister said. "Certain media organizations tried to give an impression that our internal front is not strong. But they should know that it will be difficult to penetrate into our domestic front," he added.
He said he expected that history would tell a different story about the Sept. 11 attacks.
"... I believe that those who had gone on that mission did not know where they were going and even their mission. There must have been a big brain and big interests behind them," the interior minister explained.
Prince Naif said demonstrations are strictly prohibited in the Kingdom.
"There was an attempt to stage a demonstration in Riyadh, but the attempt was foiled. In Dhahran about 60 people participated in a rally which was heading toward the US Consulate, but it was dispersed before it reached its destination. In Jeddah, there was also an unsuccessful attempt to stage a demonstration by women," he said.
"We are aware of the fact that those who had tried to stage demonstrations did so with good intentions, but we think that demonstrations which destroy shopping centers, set fire to flags and perpetuate subversive acts are useless and even harmful," he said. Instead of staging demonstrations, the Saudi leadership urged its people to provide the Palestinians with financial assistance, he said, noting that about SR400 million were collected in a fundraising campaign.
Commenting on calls to stop oil supplies to world markets, Prince Naif said: "Why do they only ask Saudi Arabia to do so? The termination of oil supplies will never benefit us. The Kingdom did so in 1956 during the era of King Saud, and again in 1967 during the time of King Faisal. But now the situation is different."
Highlighting the strength of the Saudi economy, the prince said the Kingdom had no foreign debts.
"We have never borrowed from any foreign party. However, we have borrowed from some internal financial institutions, but these internal debts are not a matter of concern," he added.
"The Kingdom does not levy taxes, and it is still a welfare state which provides its people with facilities and services. Moreover, its oil reserves are huge, and we are not worried about our economic situation," he said.
He underlined the importance of maintaining good relations with Iran, adding that it will strengthen regional security.
