RIYADH (Reuters) - Fearing the impact of a U.S.-led war on Iraq, Washington's regional ally Saudi Arabia said on Monday a diplomatic solution should be sought even if the United Nations authorises military action against its neighbor.
"The kingdom asks for allowing an opportunity for dialogue even if the United Nations decides on war. This is an Arab demand to give diplomatic action a chance to spare the region human disaster caused by war," the Saudi Press Agency quoted a cabinet statement as saying.
Crown Prince Abdullah, the de facto Saudi ruler, said on Sunday he did not believe there would be a war on Iraq, adding that the kingdom was making undisclosed proposals to Arab states that, if accepted, could "solve many problems." He did not explain how.
Officials said the Saudi proposals would be put formally to an annual Arab summit to be held in Bahrain in March.
"The proposal calls on Arab states to close ranks and totally reject any illegitimate foreign aggression on any Arab country," one Saudi official told Reuters. He did not mention any diplomatic plan to defuse the Iraq crisis.
A Gulf-based analyst said it was not clear how another Arab declaration against any attack on Iraq could persuade Washington to stay its hand. Arab leaders have in the past opposed any war on Iraq, while urging Baghdad to obey U.N. resolutions.
"Prince Abdullah's suggestion that there won't be a war and his proposal are just hopes," the analyst said.
"The Arabs can't do anything, especially when the United States knows it will lose credibility and authority in the region if it backs down. This proposal is meant for domestic consumption to show the Arab people their governments have done all they could to avoid a war."
The Saudi activity coincides with heightened unease in Europe and the Middle East as the United States pours more troops and weapons into the Gulf in preparation for a possible war on Iraq over its alleged prohibited weapons program.
It also follows consultations between Saudi Arabia and Middle Eastern leaders -- most recently Turkish Prime Minister Abdullah Gul. Egypt's President Hosni Mubarak plans to travel to Riyadh Tuesday, an Egyptian official said in Cairo.
Mubarak, who met Gul a week ago, said Sunday Turkey had proposed sending a special envoy to Iraqi President Saddam Hussein to try to avert war, Egyptian newspapers reported.
"But Egypt advised (Turkey) it was necessary to secure U.S. support for this step so that no problems arise and we are taken by surprise with the start of an attack on Iraq," al-Ahram said.
Turkish Trade Minister Kursad Tuzmen, visiting Baghdad, delivered a letter from Gul Sunday urging Iraq to comply with U.N. resolutions to stave off war.
AWKWARD POSITION
Saudi Arabia's rulers, guardians of Islam's holiest sites, have many misgivings about another U.S.-led war on Iraq, an Arab and Muslim neighbor. The kingdom was the main launchpad for the 1991 U.S.-led Gulf War that drove Iraqi troops from Kuwait.
U.S. support for Israel in its conflict with the Palestinians has fueled anti-American sentiment in the kingdom, along with popular sympathy for Saudi-born Osama bin Laden, presumed mastermind of the September 11 attacks on U.S. cities.
The kingdom is nervous about a conflict next door as this would force it to cope simultaneously with domestic anger at the United States and likely U.S. demands for military cooperation.
Saudi Arabia and other Arab nations have publicly rejected a war, but most acknowledge they are powerless to prevent it.
Saudi Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal has repeatedly said that if the U.N. Security Council authorises a war against Iraq, the kingdom and other countries would be obliged to cooperate.