“Anyone who thinks he can control Iraq is deluding himself,” Prince Saud said in reply to a question about Washington’s perceived plans to “control” Iraq after a possible war.

“Iraq is a people, a country, a civilization, a history, and its people will not tolerate any external control,” he added. The US has said it intends to set up a military administration in Iraq after the eventual overthrow of President Saddam Hussein.

On the possibility of the US going to war without UN support, Prince Saud said: “Unilateral action would not be advisable. It would not be in the interest of Iraq, the region or the United States. Thankfully, we have seen the United States agreeing to allow the United Nations to tackle the issue.”

The foreign minister was also asked about a recent report which said America’s interest in Iraq was strictly to gain control of its oil reserves. “We are not about speculation or conspiracy theories. But we are for the survival and stability of the region.

“Our goal is to avoid war. Any opportunity that can lead to that should be utilized. Peace is always the best solution.”

He voiced reservations about French-German proposals to expand UN arms inspections in Iraq, saying they would only add to the region’s woes. “Proposals to increase monitors and dispatch international forces to Iraq ... do not solve the problem and would perpetuate the state of tension,” the prince said. “The region needs a quick settlement based on Iraq’s compliance with the UN inspectors’ demands and ruling out a military solution.”

Under the French-German proposals, UN inspections in Iraq would be open-ended and the international boycott of Baghdad would be tightened, he said. “We appreciate the efforts of all parties seeking to find a peaceful solution to the Iraq issue. But there are essential issues which are of major concern to us, chiefly ending the suffering of the Iraqi people (from UN sanctions) which has lasted 12 years and ... secondly (safeguarding) Iraq’s unity, independence, sovereignty and internal stability,” Prince Saud said.

“Any proposals should deal with the Iraq question as a whole and not be based on political considerations or disputes among the concerned member states of the UN Security Council ... We are uneasy at the present differences between member states on ways of implementing (the Council’s) resolutions.

“Proposals now on the table lead to one of two things: A military solution that would kill Iraq ... and solutions that would choke it.”

The foreign minister denied a Washington Post report that Saudi Arabia and the US had come to an agreement on the use of Saudi military bases in the event of a new Gulf war. “They must know something I don’t,” he said. “We will not allow it (Prince Sultan Base) to be used for anything other than what was agreed in the Safwan accord of 1991.” The accord states that usage of the base is to enforce the “no fly” zone over southern Iraq.

When asked under what circumstances the Kingdom would ask US troops to leave, Prince Saud said he did not know. “I can’t visualize any circumstances (for that to happen), but if that were to happen I’m sure that it would be an amicable agreement, and it would be done in our national interest.”

Prince Saud said the Arab summit will be held in Sharm El-Sheikh in Egypt on March 1. “We will look into repairing the Arab condition, and reforms across our region,” he said. “This will happen if they do as we say. This will strengthen our relations in the Arab world, and all nations in the Middle East should work toward that goal.”

An unnamed Saudi official told AFP yesterday that the Kingdom saw no point in holding an emergency summit of the Organization of the Islamic Conference, as proposed by Qatar. Such a meeting would be useless for Arabs and Muslims and would lend nothing new to the Iraq issue, the official was quoted as saying.