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Riyadh says senators have got it wrong

Saudi Arabia has dismissed strong criticism by US senators of its policy on terrorism, calling it a result of "misunderstanding and wrong assessment" of Riyadh's position, newspapers reported yesterday.

"What was attributed to the two senate members involves a misunderstanding and wrong assessment of our positions and policies," Saudi Interior Minister Prince Nayef bin Abdul Aziz was quoted as saying.

"We hope that this type of thinking -- which is not in line with reality and defies truth -- would stop," he said.

On Sunday, maverick Republican Senator John McCain and Democrat Senator Joseph Lieberman accused Riyadh and Cairo for not doing enough in the US war on terrorism and of supporting extremist groups in their own countries.

McCain denounced what he said was a lack of commitment to concrete assistance to Washington from the two states, the strongest US allies in the Arab and Muslim world and pivotal to garnering Arab support for the war on terror.

He also called for Riyadh and Cairo to "take the megaphone back from extremist elements."

But US Secretary of State Colin Powell responded on Sunday by saying Riyadh and Cairo are cooperating fully with the US-led war on terror despite a mounting public dissent at home.

"They are with us. I mean, both Egypt and Saudi Arabia have responded to every request we have made of them," Powell said.

But, the US top diplomat noted, "they have people within those two countries who are not happy with what we are doing."

Several of the 19 presumed hijackers of four commercial aircraft that crashed into US buildings on Sept. 11, killing more than 5,000 people, had Egyptian or Saudi passports.

Prince Nayef said Saturday there was no crisis in US-Saudi relations and denounced what he called a western media campaign against the kingdom.

A scathing editorial last week by the New York Times also condemned Saudi leaders for not having done enough to fight terrorism.
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