Cheney confers with Saudis on peace

JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia -- Vice President Dick Cheney encountered more resistance Saturday to American action against Iraq even as he conveyed growing U.S. interest in a Saudi-sponsored Middle East peace initiative.

Cheney met with Saudi leaders who have expressed sharp reservations about any U.S. plan to move militarily against Iraq.

Saudi Arabia was the sixth stop on Cheney's 11-nation Middle East tour. Each of the six countries he has visited in the region so far has opposed a tougher stand on Iraq.

The Saudi rejection was expected and telegraphed well in advance. But it was significant because of the importance the United States places on the role of Saudi Arabia in the region.

It would be difficult for the United States to mount a successful military campaign against Iraq without the support -- or at least acquiescence -- of Saudi Arabia, many military analysts suggest.

Red-carpet greeting

Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah met Cheney at the airport, walking out on a long red carpet to greet him. The two stood at attention as a Saudi band played the national anthems of both countries.

Cheney then had an audience with the ailing King Fahd and the met again with Abdullah, including a dinner session.

Abdullah is the de facto leader of the country since Fahd, his half brother, had a stroke in 1995.

Abdullah's peace initiative -- offering Israel full diplomatic recognition in exchange for a withdrawal of lands it seized in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war -- was fast gaining support in the Arab world.

Cheney's message to Abdullah was that the United States supported his efforts even though at this point the plan does not have a lot of details, U.S. officials said.

The Bush administration sees the Abdullah plan as possibly adding to the momentum to reduce violence when it is presented at an Arab League conference this month in Lebanon.

In one Arab nation after another, Cheney has found leaders primarily focused on resolving the corrosive Israeli-Palestinian crisis, no matter how much he tries to change the subject to a tougher stand on Baghdad.