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WikiLeaks reveals 5 Arab countries concerned about Iran
It’s common knowledge that the Israeli government considers Iran an existential threat, and that it has been trying to persuade the US to act more forcefully. And while there have always been rumblings of discontent with Iran among Arab nations, the WikiLeaks release Sunday provides concrete evidence that Israel isn’t the only one in the region to feel worried. The now-disclosed but formerly secret diplomatic cables reveal that several Sunni-led Arab nations, particularly Saudi Arabia, also sought to curb Shiite-led Iran. Below are five Arab countries keeping a watchful eye.
Saudi King Abdullah. (Fahad Shadeed/Reuters/File)
Saudi Arabia
Sunni-majority Saudi Arabia, the world's largest Arab country by land size and – as the world’s largest crude oil producer – one of the region's wealthiest nations, has also been (until now, secretly) a strong opponent to Iran’s growing nuclear capabilities. But according to a cable recording a conversation between Saudi Ambassador to the US Adel al-Jubair and a US diplomat, Saudi King Abdullah repeatedly urged the US to attack Iran. “He told you to cut the head off the snake,” al-Jubair told the diplomat – the snake, of course, being Iran. The cables also reveal a US plan to reduce Chinese energy dependence on Iran by increasing China's purchases of Saudi oil.
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