Saudi envoy to U.S.: Obama must not repeat Bush's 'sickening legacy' in Mideast
Prince Turki al-Faisal: Washington must 'drastically revise' policies vis-a-vis Palestinian issue.
By Reuters Tags: Saudi Arabia US Barack Obama Israel newsPresident Barack Obama's administration will have to "drastically revise" American policies relating to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict if Washington seeks to maintain its leadership role in the Middle East, Saudi Arabia's ambassador to the U.S. said on Friday.
In an article on the Financial Times Web site, Prince Turki al-Faisal said former President George W. Bush had left a "sickening legacy" in the Middle East.
"If the U.S. wants to continue playing a leadership role in the Middle East and keep its strategic alliances intact - especially its 'special relationship' with Saudi Arabia - it will have to drastically revise its policies vis-a-vis Israel and Palestine," Turki said.
Obama on Friday asked Saudi King Abdullah for support in halting weapons smuggling into Gaza and underscored the importance of U.S.-Saudi ties in a phone call to the Arab ruler, the White House said.
Obama spoke to several other foreign leaders on Friday, including British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, the White House said in a statement.
The call to Abdullah coincided with the publication of the article by Turki, a former Saudi intelligence chief and ambassador to the United States, warning Obama the United States was putting Saudi ties at risk with its stance on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Obama, who took office on Tuesday, named former U.S. Sen. George Mitchell as his envoy for the Middle East conflict on Thursday and vowed to aggressively pursue peace.
Hamas has said Obama's policies were no different from Bush's, and Israeli officials have said the new U.S. administration was likely to continue shunning Hamas, which is considered a terrorist group by the U.S. government.
In his phone call with Abdullah, Obama underscored the "importance of a strong U.S.-Saudi relationship" and expressed his appreciation for the Saudi ruler's support for interfaith dialogue and peace initiatives.
"He asked for Saudi support for efforts to stop weapons smuggling into Gaza and expressed interest in continuing counter-terrorism cooperation," the White House said.
Obama also discussed the situation in Gaza with the British prime minister, the White House said. Obama and Brown also talked about the need to make the Afghan conflict a top priority, it said.
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