U.S. fearful of amity between Iran, S. Arabia: Ahmadinejad

TEHRAN, Nov.8 (MNA) – Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said that the United States is afraid of relations of fraternity between Tehran and Riyadh. Ahmadinejad made the remarks during a recent interview with the Egyptian state-owned newspaper Al Akhbar in reply to a question about U.S. officials’ claim that they recently thwarted a plot by two men linked to Iran’s security agencies to assassinate the Saudi Arabian ambassador to Washington, Adel al-Jubeir. The text of the interview was published on Monday. The U.S. is “our enemy and the enemy of Saudis and all nations. The U.S. spread such a lie with the aim of creating a rift and provoking disagreement between Saudis and us. The U.S. is the standard-bearer of terrorism in the world and resorts to terrorism to achieve its purposes,” Ahmadinejad said. He added, “The U.S. is afraid of any form of friendship between Saudis and us and that is why it is seeking to drive a wedge between nations. We should make efforts to strengthen our bonds of friendship and our relations in order to stymie those efforts. The recent U.S. allegation is a lie. Iran will never commit such a crime.” Asked if there is a possibility that Iranian and Saudi Arabian officials will hold negotiations to resolve the problems that have recently surfaced, Ahmadinejad stated, “We are ready (to hold talks), and our relations have not been broken off, and negotiations are being held between us, and, with the grace of God, the U.S. will not be able to do anything.”