Saudi Arabia has told the Bush administration it will step in and assist Iraq's Sunnis in the war against Shias should the US pull its forces out.
The Saudi message on its role inside Iraq was conveyed by King Abdullah to visiting US Vice President Dick Cheney two weeks ago, The New York Times reported, quoting Arab diplomats and unnamed administration officials.
Cheney was also told by the Saudi leader that the Kingdom opposed talks between Washington and Tehran and pushed the United States to encourage the resumption of talks between Israel and the Palestinians.
Saudi Arabia's warning and message reflects the growing unease of America's Sunni Arab allies of Iran's rising influence in Iraq and its nuclear ambitions.
The Times report also makes the point that King Abdullah of Jordan has expressed concern over the rising Shia influence in Iraq and the prospect of the Shia-dominated government using Iraqi troops against the Sunni population.
Apprehensions over the impact on Sunnis inside Iraq in the event of an American withdrawal has to be seen in the context of a heightened debate within the Bush administration and Congress on the serious next steps in a war that is not only highly unpopular but is seen as having an all-round mess.
"It's a hypothetical situation, and we'd work hard to avoid such a structure. If things become so bad in Iraq, like an ethnic cleansing, we will feel we are pulled into the war," an Arab diplomat in Washington has been cited in the report.
For its part, the US is seriously pursuing an alliance of sorts that will involve the moderate Sunni regimes in the Arab
world along with Europe to take on Iran and Syria.
The Bush administration is working on a way to form a coalition of Sunni Arab nations and a moderate Shiite government in Iraq, along with the United States and Europe, to stand against 'Iran, Syria and the terrorists', a senior administration official has said.
What has been pointed out is that thus far the Saudis have promised the United States that they will not assist the Iraqi Sunni insurgency; but this pledge is only as long as the United States remained in that country.
The Saudis have been apprehensive of supporting the Sunni insurgency in Iraq because there are elements of the Al Qaeda in it that are opposed to the Saudi monarchy.
But apparently Saudi Arabia has made it known that should the sectarian war worsen, it would line up with the Sunni
tribal leaders.
In a recent speech, Saudi ambassador to the US Prince Turki al Faisal spoke against an American withdrawal from Iraq. "Just picking up and leaving is going to create a huge vacuum. The US must underline its support for the Maliki government because there is no other game in town," Prince Turki remarked.
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