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Levin sez we may shake the Saudi dust from our feet
  • The chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee wants the United States to close the Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia and shift its air operation to another base in the region, possibly Bahrain. "The situation at the Saudi base seems very unclear. We may need to move that base," said Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich. "I have an unease about our presence in Saudi Arabia. I think we may be able to find a place where we are much more welcomed openly." Levin added that behind the scenes, the Saudi government is no more welcoming than it behaves publicly. "I do think there is a real problem when we are told by a country, presumably an ally, doesn't want us to be seen," he said. "They act as though somehow or other they are doing us a favor."
    As the Saudis told Bush last August, the time may have come for a parting of the ways. Bahrain or Abu Dhabi might appreciate us more than our "best friends" the Saudis. And next time Iraq decides to roll south, maybe they'll pass Kuwait and take Saudi Arabia instead. Should that come to pass, we might have to have our national hair done, so we won't be able to make it to the defense until all the Saud family is in Monaco or Biarritz. There might even be a personable young Emir in Bahrain or Abu Dhabi who wouldn't mind too much picking up the governmental reins in Arabia.
    Posted by: Fred Pruitt 2002-01-15
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    http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=373