RIYADH, 10 April 2003 — The Kingdom yesterday called for the Iraqi people to be allowed to choose their own government, saying the US-British occupation of Iraq should end as soon as possible.
“The government in Baghdad we will deal with is the one chosen by the Iraqi people. We will not anticipate events. We will accept whatever the Iraqi people decide,” Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal said.
“The way should be open before the Iraqi people to choose the means by which they wish to run their own affairs and the occupation should end as soon as possible,” Prince Saud told a press conference here.
“The Kingdom will wait for the Iraqi people to set up their government and then we will deal with it,” the prince said, but declined to answer a question if Riyadh was ready to deal with American military rule.
In almost identical words, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and Jordan’s Foreign Minister Marwan Moasher also said they wanted to deal with a leadership chosen by the Iraqi people alone.
“The Iraqi people must decide the future of Iraq and choose their own leadership. No one else can do that. This is Jordan’s firm position,” Moasher said.
Mubarak said a new Iraqi leadership chosen by the people should be formed quickly. “An Iraq being governed by its sons is the quickest way to ensure stability for the Iraqi people,” MENA news agency quoted Mubarak as saying.
Prince Saud said the new Baghdad government should be recognized by the United Nations, which must be involved in Iraq.
He also warned against lawlessness, looting and lack of security in Iraq, saying if it continued it may lead to a catastrophe.
“Saudi Arabia observes with increasing concern the collapse of security, chaos, theft and looting, and warns that this situation could lead to a humanitarian disaster,” he said.
He called upon the international community to make immediate efforts to bring about peace and security in Iraq and send humanitarian assistance to the Iraqis.
“The time has come for Iraq to restore its due place in the comity of nations after years of isolation and bloody wars,” he said.
Prince Saud said the idea that Arab countries were concerned about the spread of democracy in the region was “ridiculous”.
“Does the idea of participation in governing their affairs seem a threat to the people of the Middle East? The question seems to us in the region to be ridiculous,” he said.
“The threat comes from guns, the threat comes from bombs, the threat comes if somebody talks about the Middle East as only a region where resources are to be exploited,” he added.
Prince Saud emphasized the need to protect Iraqi civilians and historical and cultural monuments in Baghdad, considering its special position in Islamic and Arab history.
