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July 7, 2006 |
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A MESSAGE FROM THE CUSTODIAN OF THE TWO HOLY MOSQUES TO PRESIDENT PUTIN DELIVERED BY PRINCE SALMAN. PRINCE SALMAN: RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN SAUDI ARABIA AND RUSSIA HAVE REACHED A HIGH LEVEL. PRINCE TURKI AL-FAISAL STRESSES AT THE BROOKINGS INSTITUTE SAUDI ARABIA'S PLEDGE TO FULFILL ITS COMMITMENT IN THE OIL PRODUCTION. The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz has sent a message to Russian President Vladimir Putin dealing with relations between the two friendly countries. The message was conveyed to President Putin by Prince Salman Ibn Abdul Aziz, Governor of Riyadh region, during an audience with President Putin in Moscow today. During the reception, Prince Salman conveyed greetings of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz and Crown Prince Sultan Ibn Abdul Aziz, Deputy Premier, Minister of Defence and Aviation and Inspector General, to the Russian President and people and government of Russia. Prince Salman also thanked the Russian government for their hospitality, pointing out to the keenness of the Saudi leadership to further bolster its relations with Russia. On his part, Putin conveyed his greetings to King Abdullah and Crown Prince Sultan, stressing the strength of the relations between the two countries. Putin and Prince Salman also discussed ways of strengthening further the bilateral ties between the two countries in all fields. The reception was attended by prince Dr. Faisal Ibn Salman Ibn Abdul Aziz and Saudi ambassador to Russia Mohammad Hassan Abdul Wali. On the Russian part, the reception was attended by Youri Lojokov, Moscow's Mayor; Prime Minister's Assistant for Foreign Affairs Sergei Burhkodka; and Deputy Minister Of Foreign Affairs Alexander Sultanov. Prince Salman Ibn Abdul Aziz, the Governor of Riyadh Region of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia arrived on an official several day visit to Moscow. He was received at the airport by Deputy Mayor of Moscow and senior protocol officials, Prince Dr. Faisal Ibn Salman Ibn Abdul Aziz, Mohammed Hassan Abdul Wali, Saudi Ambassador to Russia, Arab ambassadors accredited to Russia and Saudi embassy staff members. Prince Salman was accompanied by a number of princes and senior Riyadh Governorate officials. Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov received at the headquarters of the Russian government visiting Prince Salman Ibn Abdul Aziz, the Governor of Riyadh Region of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. At the outset of the meeting, the Russian Prime Minister welcomed Prince Salman and confirmed that relations between the two countries witness continuous boosts to the importance of the two countries at the international arena. On his part, Prince Salman thanked him, conveying to him the greetings of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz and his Crown Prince. Prince Salman noted that last visit of the monarch to Russia has contributed to enhancing the improving ties between the two friendly countries. The meeting was attended by officials on the two sides. Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov received in Moscow Riyadh Governor Prince Salman, who is on a state visit to the Russian republic. Fradkov highlighted the strong relations enjoyed between Russia and Saudi Arabia while Prince Salman conveyed greetings from Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah and the Crown Prince Sultan, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defense and Aviation and Inspector General. "Prince Salman's program included, among other things, a meeting the Russian President and the Mayor of Moscow Yuri Luzhkov," said the Saudi Ambassador to Moscow Muhammad Hassan Adbul Wali. On his arrival at Moscow's main airport, the deputy mayor of Moscow, the Russian deputy chief of foreign relations and the Russian adviser for foreign affairs received Prince Salman, who was accompanied by Prince Faisal Ibn Salman, and Ambassador Hassan Abdul Wali. Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal described Saudi-Russian relations as strategically important and said that the relationship served the common interests of both countries including the stand taken by Saudi Arabia and Russia on various areas particularly in the field of energy. The ambassador highlighted the keenness of both sides to keep oil prices steady in such a way that the interests of both consumers and suppliers are protected and the prices do not adversely impact the international economy. Prince Salman Ibn Abdul Aziz was expected to discuss several joint projects with Russian officials and businessmen in addition to investments and ways to explore avenues of cooperation between the two countries. The prince I was also scheduled to meet the president and members of the council of Saudi-Russian Business Council. Prince Salman is accompanied by a number of dignitaries including Prince Muhammad Ibn Salman, Prince Turki Ibn Salman, Prince Khaled Ibn Salman, Prince Naif Ibn Salman, Riyadh Mayor Abdul Aziz Ibn Ayyaf and Abdul Rahman Al-Jeraisy, the chairman the Riyadh Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Prince Salman Ibn Abdul Aziz, the Governor of Riyadh Region of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, paid a visit to the Moscow-based Religious Department for Russian Muslims. He was received by senior religious officials and dignitaries. They exchanged talks on Muslims affairs and lauded the support extended by the government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for Muslims all over the world. Prince Salman Ibn Abdul Aziz, Governor of Riyadh Region, met with Arab ambassadors accredited to the Federal Republic of Russia. During the meeting, cordial talks, Arab Russian relations and developments at the Arab, Islamic and international arenas were discussed. The ambassadors welcomed Prince Salman's visit to Moscow, describing it as a significant station for the Arab Russian relations. Prince Salman's official accompanying delegation attended the meeting. Prince Salman Ibn Abdul Aziz, the Governor of Riyadh Region, graced a dinner party held in his honor by Moscow Mayor Yuri Logkov. The function was attended by Prince Salman's accompanying official delegation. Senior officials and dignitaries on the Russian side also took part. Prince Salman Ibn Abdul Aziz, Governor of Riyadh Region, donated an amount of money to Islamic Center in Moscow. The Saudi Ambassador to Moscow Mohammed Hassan Wali said the donation would contribute to better equipping the center for the benefit of Muslims in Russia. Prince Salman Ibn Abdul Aziz, Governor of Riyadh Region, concluded a several day visit to Russia. He was seen off at the airport by Deputy Mayor of Moscow Valery Vengradv, senior officials and Saudi Ambassador to Russia Mohammed Hassan Wali. On the other hand Saudi Minister of Culture and Information Iyad bin Ameen Madani met in Moscow with the Minister of Culture and Mass Communication of the Federal Republic of Russia Alexander Sergeyevich Sokolov. During the meeting, aspects of cooperation between the two sides in the cultural fields were discussed. Also each side gave an account on the cultural aspects of his country and people to the other. Later, Madani met with the Director of the Russian news agency Novesti Michael Tofeid Koy who briefed the Saudi minister on the activities of Novesti. Saudi Minister of Culture and Information Iyad Ibn Amin Madani met with the Director General of Itar-Tass news agency Vitali Ignatinko. During the meeting, ways of expanding cultural exchange between Moscow and Riyadh were discussed, noting that this would enhance political and economic ties. On his part, Madani invited Russian media, including news agencies to open offices in the Kingdom. Madani also said the Kingdom spares no effort for the stability of the situation in Iraq. Meantime Russian newspapers highlighted a number of international topics particularly the meeting held between Russia's President Vladimir Putin and Prince Salman Ibn Abdul Aziz, the Governor of Riyadh Region in Kremlin. Russian newspaper ''Vremia Novostiey'' quoted sources at the presidency's court as saying that President Putin and Prince Salman discussed bilateral relations and a number of international topics of mutual interest. On the other hand Saudi Ambassador to the US Prince Turki Al-Faisal gave an overview of the Kingdom's perspective on Saudi-US relations five years after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in a speech at the Brookings Institution in Washington. Prior to September 11, the Saudi-US relationship worked because the two countries had common interests with oil at the center. "But, our sensitivities to each other's sensitivities led us to keep things from each other. And criticisms definitely festered beneath the surface on both sides," Prince Turki noted. After the September 11 attacks, the relationship was in crisis. Criticism of the Kingdom abounded in the media and in books. "There now existed deep suspicion, mistrust, and misperception. Everything had to be re-examined," Prince Turki said. "It was a horrible period of time." Today, both countries are emerging from that period of crisis and confirming their commitment to each other and to the Saudi-US alliance, Prince Turki remarked. Many of the world's challenges, such as stability in the Middle East, the war on terrorism and energy security, can't be met alone, and require cooperation between the two countries. In addition, both countries recognized that the Saudi-US relationship is based on much more than oil, Prince Turki said. There are a number of important pillars that form the foundation of the relationship, including oil, trade, counterterrorism, Middle East stability and military cooperation. The ambassador outlined four ways to help Saudi Arabia and the US improve relations and address current and future challenges. First, there must be stronger links between the two governments and an institutional framework to deal with complex issues. A good example is the Saudi-US Strategic Dialogue, which has already met twice. Second, there must be more people-to-people contact more Americans should visit the Kingdom, and more Saudis should come to America to share their views and learn, Prince Turki said. To that end, the Kingdom has expanded scholarship programs for students, with most coming to the United States. Third, there should be a focus on developing better relations between Saudi Arabia and Congress, a matter that is a personal priority, Prince Turki said. More members of Congress should visit the Kingdom and see what it is really like, he suggested. Finally, the type of discourse between the United States and Saudi Arabia needs to change. There should be more constructive commentary, not political rhetoric that hardens all elements of society and makes reform in the Kingdom more difficult. "Americans want to see and hear about reform and change in Saudi society and political culture. This is on the agenda. But we're not going to change just because you told us to. We are changing and reforming our society because it is the right thing to do for our country," Prince Turki said. Following is Prince Turki Al-Faisal's address "I Think We Need to Talk" at the Brookings Institution, Washington, DC, June 19, 2006 Thank you, Ambassador Indyk, for that kind introduction. I am glad to be here today. I should thank Mr. Peter Singer for his work at Brookings dealing with Middle East issues. And I would like to thank Ms. Rabab Fayad for coordinating this event. Thank you. I noticed on the way over here that in this part of town there is Brookings, the Carnegie Endowment, and the Center for American Progress. If you can't find what suits you, I guess you can simply move down the road. And if you're still not happy, there's a Starbucks around the corner. Of course, there's a Starbucks around every corner. I would like to thank you again for inviting me to speak here today. I appreciate the opportunity to engage so many thought leaders in this area. You play an important role in American and international politics. Your ideas are considered, and actions are taken based on your assessments of global issues. As Margaret Mead once said, "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has." I hope today some of my ideas may inspire future actions that will contribute to better international understanding and cooperation. The theme here today five years after September 11 is an important one. It would be an understatement to say that during this time much has changed in the world, because on that day, everything changed in an instant. Much more has happened since. But the transformation we've seen has been less about tearing apart and more about rebuilding. We all had to begin again, because more than buildings collapsed that day. Relationships, understanding, and security all fell apart. We had to re-examine who we thought we knew, and our sense of the world around us. Saudi Arabia certainly went through this. One American columnist wrote after 9/11 that Saudi Arabia had gone through a state of shock, then denial, then introspection, and then action. I think this is a fair assessment. The United States realized that its concerns with the Middle East and the Arab and Islamic worlds can no longer be side issues. Certainly for the Saudi-U.S. relationship, a great deal changed right away. And this is what I would like to talk about today. Over the past five years, the relationship between our two nations has been severely tested. But we have endured the challenges and we have come very far in that time. It is appropriate to speak about how far we've come, and where we need to go, and, definitely, some ideas on how we can get there. To begin, let's look at where the Saudi-U.S. relationship was prior to September 11. Our relationship worked because we had a lot in common. I think, as people, Saudis and Americans genuinely liked each other. We're plain spoken. We believe in faith and family. And over the years, we had formed friendships and business partnerships. Our relationship was polite. We danced around some issues. And although there were many dimensions to the relationship including trade and military cooperation oil was at the center. The relationship had its ups and downs, as all do. We helped each other where we could. Out mutual efforts to combat the threat of communism throughout the world united us in a common cause one in which we both prevailed. And together, we stopped Saddam Hussein's aggression and drove him from Kuwait. We were strong military allies, reliable energy partners and good friends. But, our sensitivities to each other's sensitivities led us to keep things from each other . And criticisms definitely festered beneath the surface on both sides. After September 11, this relationship, which had lasted in calm for some 60 years, was plunged into crisis. There now existed deep suspicion, mistrust, and misperception. Everything had to be re-examined. It was a horrible period of time. Saudi Arabia, for one, faced brutal criticism. Our country, our faith, and our national character were maligned almost daily in books, newspapers and on television. If we look at some titles of books from this period published as works of scholarship we can recall some of the sentiment of the time. Titles included Sleeping With the Devil: How Washington Sold Its Soul for Saudi Crude; Forbidden Truth: U.S.-Taliban Secret Oil Diplomacy, Saudi Arabia and the Failed Search for bin Laden; Hatred's Kingdom: How Saudi Arabia Supports the New Global Terrorism; and perhaps the most absurd of all, House of Bush, House of Saud: The Secret Relationship Between the World's Two Most Powerful Dynasties. There are plenty more. "Instant experts" as they are called came from everywhere. Though few, if any, ever even visited the Kingdom. But by using words like jihad, madrassa, and Wahhabism, they were able to tap into the uncertainty and misunderstanding that haunted our relationship. Nevertheless, through hard work, and because our nations have leaders who understand the importance of relations between our countries, we're now emerging from this period. The United States and Saudi Arabia have reaffirmed their commitment to each other. We've confirmed that we are allies. And our countries have recognized the importance of why we have stayed together for so long. We have also recognized that many of the world's major challenges, including the war on terrorism, stability in the Middle East, and energy security cannot be successfully resolved without both our close commitment and cooperation. The hallmarks of the relationship are that we keep nothing from one another. We know that we have to confront problems and issues instead of looking past them. A good example of this was Saudi Arabia's opposition to the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003. We were straightforward in expressing our views. But when the invasion began, we knew where we belonged on the side of the Iraqi people. Since 2003, we have provided humanitarian assistance to the Iraqi people. And Saudi Arabia continues to support efforts to bring about a peaceful and united Iraqi government that represents all of the Iraqi people. I would say, most importantly though, during our period of re-examination, the U.S. and Saudi Arabia recognized that the relationship is bound by much more than oil. We have a number of important pillars that support our relationship. I can think of five: oil, trade, the war on terrorism, Middle East stability, and military cooperation. These pillars form our foundation. They define our interaction and provide us with concrete reasons why we are still together. But where do we go from here? How do we continue to improve our relationship? There are still many issues left unresolved. There are still sticking points. To address the challenges before us and the challenges ahead, the first thing we have done is to put in place stronger links between our two governments and an institutional framework to better manage the many complex issues we have on our common agenda. The clearest example of how this is taking shape is the Saudi-U.S. Strategic Dialogue. This new mechanism is intended to institutionalize relations between our countries to overcome inevitable differences and to align our resources and capabilities to a greater extent. The Strategic Dialogue is progressing through regular meetings between the Saudi Foreign Minister and the US Secretary of State and the establishment of Working Groups from both governments to work constructively and comprehensively, on a continuous basis, in a range of issues of importance to both countries The first meeting occurred during King Abdullah's visit with President Bush last year in Crawford, and since then Foreign Minister Prince Saud and Secretary of State Rice have met twice for the Strategic Dialogue. The gatherings are open to candid discussion and have taken on a collegial tone. There were also be meetings of the six Working Groups, which include: Energy; Economic and Financial Affairs; Consular Affairs; Cultural Affairs and Human Resources; Military Affairs; and Counterterrorism. Another thing we are doing to improve relations is to increase our people-to-people contact. For one, the Kingdom is encouraging more delegations of officials, and business leaders, and citizens to come to the United States to share their views and to learn in kind. We have also expanded a scholarship program to send our students to college abroad. Most of our students will be coming to the United States. They will not only be receiving a world-class education, they will be forming the next generation of friendships and bonds between Saudis and Americans. They will be the true ambassadors. And yet another thing we can do is develop better relations between Saudi Arabia and the U.S. Congress. This is a priority for me. I have been meeting with members of Congress. I have been working to answer their concerns and questions about the Kingdom, and express to them our concerns and our questions about how we view our relationship with the U.S. There are a lot of issues on this level, as your representatives in both Houses of Congress are some of our toughest critics. Last November, for example, a month after I officially became ambassador, the Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing entitled "Saudi Arabia: Friend or Foe." Frankly, I thought that was a bit insulting to Saudis because we have never been a foe of the United States. On the contrary, in the last 60 years, we have always considered ourselves to be good friends of the U.S., and felt that the U.S. looked upon us as good friends. I made a point to meet with Senator [Arlen] Specter, who chaired the hearing, and we talked about his concerns. They were mainly about education and religious extremism in Saudi Arabia. I reached out to the senator as a respectful friend. I made sure he knows that I am here and available to him as is the embassy staff. And in the future, he knows he doesn't have to search for an interlocutor when he has issues or questions. He can come directly to me for answers. That is a message I want all members to hear. If you have a concern about Saudi Arabia, come to us. In fact, I would like them to come to us in any case. I would like to see more members coming to the Kingdom. Do you know how many members of Congress have been to Saudi Arabia since September 11? Less than 20. For a country of such critical importance to American, regional, and global affairs, why have so few American representatives come to the Kingdom? We welcome them. We want them to see our country. We want them to meet our businessmen. We want them to hear from our citizens our men, our women, and our children. I guarantee if they come to the Kingdom, their outlook on us will be changed for the positive. This brings me to my last observation on how we can improve our relationship in the future. This last one perhaps affects all of you the most. Because I think the type of discourse between the United States and Saudi Arabia needs to change. We don't mind being criticized. There is a well-known saying in Arabic: "Your true friend is one who is honest with you, not one who agrees with you." But it is the way in which Americans criticize whether it is politicians or public figures or thought leaders that causes us concern. We often hear political rhetoric and not constructive commentary. Americans want to see and hear about reform and change in Saudi society and political culture. This is on the agenda. But we're not going to change just because you told us to. We are changing and reforming our society because it is the right thing to do for our country. Making dictums only makes matters more difficult. It hardens all elements of society. So we need your comments to be a constructive addition to our reform efforts, not something that makes the process markedly more difficult. For all of you here today, why not productively engage us instead of engaging in rhetoric that seems designed to drive us away? Currently, we find the analysis of Saudi Arabia lacking. It does not have a clear and real understanding of what is going on in the Kingdom. It needs to be less revealing of political agenda, for good or for bad. That would be helpful to both sides. In fact, you too should come and spend time in the Kingdom. We don't mind discussing the difficult issues. We're doing so ourselves. Several years ago, we initiated a National Dialogue, which has covered issues such as extremism, the role of women, and cultural tolerance. King Abdullah has directed that the next National Dialogue focus on educational development in the Kingdom. This is an important topic right now. Your opinions, your thoughts, and your analysis are not just considered by Americans. They are considered by Saudis, too. And, if we want to improve the state of our relations, it would behoove us to improve every level of our communications. Our interests are too intertwined. If you look at the problems we're facing today the war on terrorism, Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Palestine and Israel, energy none of these problems can be faced alone. The U.S. cannot deal with these problems without us. And we cannot deal with them without you. I hope this has provided you with an overview of the Saudi perspective five years later. I now look forward to hearing your perspective. I would be glad to answer any questions you may have. As we say in Arabic, Ashkurukum shukran jazeelan thank you all very much and barak Allah feekum God bless you all. |
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