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| International |
| Riyadh slams The Briefing |
| 2002-08-07 |
| Saudi officials and newspapers responded Wednesday to a briefing given to a Pentagon advisory board that described the kingdom as an enemy of the United States and active on all levels of terrorism. Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal described the briefing as "pure fiction", stressing that relations were "excellent in all fields." "Things couldn't be better. We are fine. How are you?" "A current has been growing recently in Washington to undermine the historical relations between the kingdom and the United States, at the instigation of certain quarters who are enemies to Saudi Arabia," Okaz daily said. "The danger of this group lies in its great penetration of the institutions that decide US foreign policy." "Cheeze! Those suckers noticed! What do we do now? I know! We'll deny everything!" Okaz said the anti-Saudi campaign in the aftermath of September 11 had influenced decision-makers in Washington "who have opened the way for this fierce attack which makes our most friendly country the most dangerous to our interests and security." They mean that a considerable faction in the U.S. doesn't want to play games with Insidious International Criminal Masterminds™ and is willing to beat the crap out of them... After speaking over the phone with US Secretary of State Colin Powell, Prince Saud said: "The two countries have been friends and allies for over 60 years. "It is unfortunate that there are people in some quarters who are trying to cast doubt and undermine the solid and historic ties between our two countries. I am confident that they will not succeed." The official SPA agency noted that Secretary Powell "reiterated the US governments's long-standing position regarding the close and historic ties between the two countries, and emphasized that there is no change in the strong relations between them." "Oh, of course, Princie, old pal. It's all a tempest in a teacup. But just for form's sake, maybe you want to think about toning down the preachers on Fridays and cutting the money flow to the people who want to kill us? Be a nice move to kinda defuse the tensions, y'know?" US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld for his part said Tuesday the July 10 briefing by Rand Corp. analyst Laurent Murawiec "did not represent the views of the government, it did not represent the views of the Defense Policy Board." "You don't want to know what the real views of the Defense Policy Board are. We don't use that kinda language in public statements." |
| Posted by:Fred Pruitt |
| #4 The royal house of saud is in pretty deep kimchee here. They are a long way from beloved by 'their people' and we really dont need them to stage our bases to attack Iraq. Turkey, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Qatar, Yemen and the United Arab Emirates will suffice. As far as oil goes they need to sell it much more than we need to buy it. Ive was thinking over the weekend that the islamofacists have turned to terrorism for the same reason that the japanese turned to kamikaze attacks. The use of kamikazes was not a strategy that would win the war, but one that would help ensure the best terms of surrender, I think that same thing applied to the islamofacists. What Im thinking is this: 1) the idea of 'islamic pan-nationalism' is dying, they've lost, they cant compete against the west in any capacity and nothing will change that. If it wasnt for an accident in geology, they would already be as gone as the people of easter island. 2) So what do you do instead? make sure you get the best terms you can quickly before youre in no position to say anything. 3) I think the screwed up. I dont think it turned out quite like they planned. Just as the japanese failed to understand that the kamikaze attacks at okinawa lead directly to the decision to drop the bomb on hiroshima. < Im happy that we arent in Saudi, and I hope our 'King Khalid Air Force Base' was built by the very best government contractors we have to offer. I also hope we managed to get GPS coordinates for everything that stands upright on the site, could come in handy later.... |
| Posted by: frank martin 2002-08-07 13:18:10 |
| #3 What they say isn't nearly as important as what they do. If they're really bright, they'll grumble a bit about how it's all a misunderstanding and they'll start dismantling the terror machine so we can all pretend it never really happened. I don't think they're very bright, though. I think they'll continue to deny, and they'll get increasingly arrogant, and after Iraq is roundly thumped and a regime with the approximate honesty and efficiency of, say, New Jersey's installed, we'll thump the Soddies, too. |
| Posted by: Fred 2002-08-07 08:13:53 |
| #2 The US is about to wage war with Saddam. From a strategic standpoint we need Saudi assistance in that effort. So let's "unofficially" put them on the spot....ya with us or against us? So they can "unofficially" let the oil flow and the F16s fly over. |
| Posted by: John Hare 2002-08-07 08:09:22 |
| #1 I don't think the potential importance of this can be overestimated. It's clear that the issue of the heart of Islamofascist terrorism being Saudi Arabia has been put on the table. The genie is out of the bottle, and it's not going back in. |
| Posted by: Joel Rosenberg 2002-08-07 07:49:38 |