National Guard Minister Prince Miteb bin Abdullah. (SPA)

National Guard Minister Prince Miteb bin Abdullah has called on the international community to remove the Syrian regime if it wants to defeat the Islamic State terror group.

Prince Miteb made the comments in a recent interview with Asharq Al-Awsat, a sister publication of Arab News. He returned to the Kingdom on Wednesday after a tour of the US where he met President Barack Obama and senior US officials.

He urged Iran to abide by international requirements on its nuclear program and said the Kingdom would continue to work for peace and stability in other Arab nations.

“I think that we must eradicate the reasons for the presence of ISIS (Islamic State of Iraq and Syria) and other terrorist organizations, which were formed as a result of the international community’s failure to stand with the Syrian people.”

“If the international community wants to eradicate the scourge of terrorism in Syria, it must get rid of the current Syrian regime, which created this situation of terrorism and lawlessness,” he said.

Prince Miteb said the world’s leading powers must follow the lead of Saudi Arabia and the initiatives announced by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah to confront terrorism.

In response to a question on the diverging views between the US and the Kingdom on tackling the situation in Bahrain, Prince Miteb said that there would always be differences of opinion between the two longtime allies.

However, this did not mean that the alliance was threatened in any way. The US still knows that the Arabian Gulf region is of strategic importance because of its leading place as an energy producer and exporter, said Prince Miteb.

“Therefore, the security of the Gulf region is vital and essential to the Gulf states and all countries in the world. And of course the security of the Gulf region was on the agenda of the Saudi-US talks.”

The prince said that Saudi Arabia’s policy on the security of the Gulf region is based on the principles of mutual respect and non-interference in the domestic affairs of individual nations.

“On this issue, just like other aspects of Saudi-US relations, there could be differences of opinion, but this falls within the framework of our strong and strategic relations, which are not affected by these differences.”

He said Bahrain’s leadership is responsible for the country’s security, and that other Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries would only assist in circumstances that fall under their joint security agreement.

“Bahrain has the right to protect its security from foreign interference, and Saudi Arabia stands at its side against these threats,” he said.

Prince Miteb said the Kingdom supports any agreement reached by Iran with the international community, which includes the United States, to ensure it has a nuclear program that abides by non-proliferation treaties.

Iran must conform to International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) regulations for inspections of its nuclear reactors so that it does not lead to the “militarization” of this program in future, said Prince Miteb.

He said Iran must also adopt a policy of noninterference in the affairs of independent and sovereign nations in the region.

“According to international conventions and norms, it is unacceptable to interfere in their affairs under any circumstances,” he said.

Prince Miteb said Saudi Arabia continues to work for the stability of Arab countries including Egypt, Yemen and Iraq. For example, the Kingdom supported the Egyptian people’s choice of their current government and President Abdel Fattah El-Sissi, he said.

 
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