RIYADH, 19 November 2007 — Saudi Arabia said here yesterday that it had not received any official response from Iran regarding a proposal by Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries to set up a body to provide enriched uranium to Iran to defuse Tehran’s stand-off with the West over its nuclear plan.
“The answer is no,” Prince Saud Al-Faisal answered when asked whether the Kingdom had received a response. The foreign minister had earlier made press statements that GCC countries would create a consortium for all users of enriched uranium in the Middle East. When asked what the reaction of the Kingdom would be as an OPEC member state should Iran be attacked, Prince Saud said this was a hypothetical question and did not deserve an answer. He also made it clear that OPEC was not a political organization.
At a separate news conference, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad ruled out the possibility of the United States launching an attack on his country, saying that such an attack would cost the US “dearly” since it would have serious implications on the global economy in general, and the oil sector in particular.
The Iranian president said the American government would find itself in a very tough position regarding its strategies in the region if such an attack were to take place.
“There are rational people in America who would prevent this from happening,” he said, adding that the turmoil in the region was mainly due to what he described as “injustice.”
US President George Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney hinted last month of World War III if Iran was allowed to possess a nuclear bomb.
Despite Secretary-General of the Atomic Energy Association Muhammad El-Baradie’s recent comments in the United Nations in which he played down fears of Iran building a nuclear weapon, the United States, supported by France and other European countries, is demanding more economic sanctions on Tehran.
Ahmadinejad said that oil wells would soon dry up in the world and called on oil-producing countries to “get ready” to buy oil at outrageous prices when that happens.
The Iranian delegation had earlier proposed that the final communiqué in the third OPEC summit mention the need to study the sale of crude oil in a currency other than the US dollar.
The proposal, which was supported by Venezuela but not approved by the majority of foreign ministers of OPEC member states, comes at a time when the US currency is at its weakest.
Commenting on Iran’s relationship with GCC countries, Ahmadinejad said his country had been cooperating with Gulf countries for the past 28 years, adding that trade volume between Iran and GCC states was estimated at $11 billion. The president also said that Tehran had signed an accord with Bahrain a few days ago to build a joint gas venture.
