Prince Turki Al-Faisal: Iran can be a constructive player, ‘if it wants to’

RIYADH: Prince Turki Al-Faisal, former Saudi intelligence chief and former ambassador to Washington and London, warned in Washington on Wednesday that any attempt by US President Donald Trump to strike a deal with Russia and Iran over Syria would be a most disastrous thing.
Speaking on “Rebuilding Alliances, Containing Adversaries,” at the 70th annual conference of the Middle East Institute in Washington, in which prominent Middle Eastern and American experts and foreign policy practitioners participated to discuss the challenges facing the new US administration as it sets its Middle East agenda, the prince said Trump has a duty to revive the US relations with its allies in the Middle East, including Saudi Arabia, in order to be better able to fight terrorism in the region.
Prince Turki also called on Trump not to scrap the nuclear deal with Iran, noting that it provides the international community with 15 years of respite and is a means of “policing” Tehran.
“I would rather see that this nuclear deal becomes a first step in ridding the Middle East of nuclear weapons, including those of Israel,” he said.
“We want peace in Saudi Arabia, he said, adding that Iran can be a constructive player, if it wants to, but that is something Iranians themselves ought to demand of their leadership.
“Trump should get together with America’s friends in the Middle East to stop the “biggest terrorist, Syrian President Bashar Assad,” Prince Turki said.
He also urged the real estate mogul to “pack his bags” and visit US allies in the region before his induction in January.