Saudis warn US on troop pullout

Saudi Arabia has warned Washington it might provide financial aid to Iraqi Sunnis in any fighting against Shiites if the US pulls its troops out of Iraq, the New York Times reported today.

Saudi Arabia, a majority Sunni country, has promised US officials that it will not intervene to assist Iraq's Sunni insurgency, according to the report, which cited anonymous American and Arab diplomatic sources.

But that promise might not hold if US troops leave Iraq, the newspaper said.

The Bush administration has repeatedly said there are no plans for the immediate pullout of US troops.

The newspaper reported that Saudi King Abdullah sent the warning to Vice President Dick Cheney two weeks ago during the vice president's visit to Riyadh.

The message also emphasised the kingdom's displeasure with proposed talks between the US government and Iran.

In Saudi Arabia, an official flatly denied the report. The official spoke to the Associated Press on condition of anonymity because he wasn't authorised to talk to the media.

Iran - a majority Shiite country - is believed to be providing military and financial support to Shiite elements.

The recently-released Iraq Study Group report suggested the Bush administration engage Iran and neighbouring Syria in talks aimed at applying pressure on Iraqi Shiites to keep what some analysts are calling a civil war from spiralling into a regional conflict.

Saudi Arabia has expressed concern that once US troops leave Iraq, the controlling Shiite majority could massacre the Sunni minority, believed to comprise a large faction of the deadly insurgency that has claimed thousands of Iraqi civilian and US military lives.

Saudi Arabia's fears seemed to have been exacerbated by growing discussions in Washington aimed at accelerating the timeframe for bringing troops home.