Rouhani seeks improved ties with
Gulf Arab states; holds telephonic conversation with emir of Qatar
TEHRAN: Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei launched a fierce attack against regional rival Saudi Arabia, saying it was being pumped "like a milking cow" by "infidel" Americans.
"These people (the Saudis) appear to believe in the Holy Quran ... but in practice they act against its teachings," Khamenei said at a meeting on Saturday to mark the start of the Holy month of Ramazan. "They are close with the infidels and offer the enemy the money they should be using to improve the lives of their own people.
"But in reality there is no closeness and, as the Americans have said, they are just there to pump them for money like a milking cow, and later slaughter them," he added. During a visit by President Donald Trump to Riyadh on May 21, Saudi Arabia agreed to buy $110 billion of US weapons and signed investment deals worth billions more.
Trump sought to boost an anti-Iran alliance of Arab powers during his trip -- but the visit was dismissed as a "show with no practical or political value" by Iran’s newly re-elected President Hassan Rouhani.
Meanwhile, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani called for improved relations with Gulf Arab countries during a telephone call with the emir of Qatar, which has come under fire from its Gulf neighbours over its relationship with Tehran.
Iran and the Gulf Arab states are backing opposing sides in the Syrian and Yemen conflicts. Relations were further hit last weekend when US President Donald Trump visited Saudi Arabia and accused Tehran of supporting terrorism in the Middle East.
Iran denies such accusations and says Saudi Arabia, its arch-foe, is the real source of funding for Islamist militants. Rouhani responded to Trump’s criticism by saying stability could not be achieved in the Middle East without Iran’s help.
"We want the rule of moderation and rationality in the relations between countries and we believe that a political solution should be a priority," the state news agency quoted Rouhani as telling Qatari Emir Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani.
"The countries of the region need more cooperation and consultations to resolve the crisis in the region and we are ready to cooperate in this field," Rouhani told Sheikh Tamim, state agency added.
Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates signalled exasperation this week after official Qatar media published purported remarks by Sheikh Tamim critical of Trump’s foreign policy and of renewed tensions with Tehran. Qatar said the remarks, published late on Tuesday, were fake and that the news agency that ran them had been hacked.
