Saudi King Salman bin AbdulAziz cautioned that while the international community makes extensive efforts to address Iran’s nuclear program; the Ayatollah regime exploits these efforts to fuel its expansionist agenda. “Over the past decades, the kingdom’s hands were extended openly and positively to Iran, searching for peace, but to no avail. The kingdom received several of Iran’s presidents and other senior officials in line with the kingdom’s efforts to seek ways to build relations based on good neighborliness and mutual respect. We welcomed the international effort to address Iran’s nuclear program. But time and again, the entire world witnessed how the Iranian regime abused these efforts to fuel its expansionist activities, build its terrorist networks and use terrorism in the process. It squandered the resources and wealth of the Iranian people to fulfill its expansionist project, which only brought about chaos, extremism and sectarianism.” / “Our experience with the Iranian regime has taught us that partial solutions or appeasement will not stop its threats to international peace and security,” King Salman Bin AbdulAziz, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
In light of the Saudi experience with Iran; King Salman insisted that “A comprehensive solution and a firm international position are needed to ensure fundamental solutions to the Iranian regime’s attempt to possess weapons of mass destruction, develop a ballistic missile program and its interference in the internal affairs of other countries, as well as its sponsorship of terrorism.” The Saudi monarch went on to address the recent developments vis-à-vis peace in the Middle East. “Peace in the Middle East is our strategic option. And we will spare no effort to work together towards achieving a bright future where peace, stability, prosperity and coexistence among all the region’s peoples prevail,” King Salman Bin AbdulAziz, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia said.
King Salman remains adamant that his initiative of 2002, which gains general Arab support, remains the solemn solution to the Arab-Israeli conflict – which includes an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital. That said, he also highlighted that Saudi Arabia support the Trump Administration’s efforts to reignite long-stalled negotiations for a fair and comprehensive agreement. “We support the efforts of the current U.S. administration to bring about peace in the Middle East by bringing both the Palestinians and the Israelis together at the negotiating table to reach a fair and comprehensive agreement,” King Salman Bin AbdulAziz, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia said.