Bush tour heads for Saudi Arabia

US President George W Bush is set to continue his tour of the Middle East by flying to Saudi Arabia from its Gulf neighbour, the United Arab Emirates.

Mr Bush is hoping to gather support there for his twin missions of furthering the Israeli-Palestinian peace process and of isolating Iran.

In a speech on Sunday, he warned of the dangers posed by Iran, saying it should be confronted "before it's too late".

Mr Bush also made a forceful call for strengthening democracy in the region.

The president called the fight against extremism the great ideological struggle of our time, and said only freedom, justice and democracy would defeat it.

Iranian issue

The BBC's Matthew Price, who is travelling with the president, says the Bush family has long been close to the Saudi royal family.

In the capital, Riyadh, Mr Bush will meet not just good allies, but good friends, our correspondent says.

He is expected to ask King Abdullah to support his recent efforts in the Middle East peace process and in particular to back Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas as he negotiates with the Israelis.

While visiting Israel and the Palestinian Territories on Thursday, Mr Bush said Israel had to end its occupation of some Arab land to enable the creation of a viable Palestinian state.

The president also expected to ask the king to support his efforts to isolate Iran over of its controversial nuclear programme.

In his speech in Abu Dhabi, he said Iran had defied the UN Security Council and destabilised the region by failing to be transparent about its nuclear programme.

He also described Iran as the world's leading state sponsor of terrorism, accusing it of sending hundreds of millions of dollars to extremists around the world while its own people faced repression and economic hardship.

Our correspondent says, however, that the Saudi government, like other states in the region, are unlikely to be able to offer him much on the Iranian issue.

Relations between the Gulf kingdom and Iran have been tense in the past, but in recent months there seems to have been a steady improvement, he adds.

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad became the first Iranian president to perform the annual Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca last month.

News Source : BBC News