Region | Palestinian Territories
Saudi Arabia criticises EU threat
The European Union is being "unreasonable" for threatening to cut financial aid to a Hamas-led Palestinian government, Saudi Arabia's foreign minister said on Tuesday.
- Agencies
- Published: 00:00 January 31, 2006
Riyadh: The European Union is being "unreasonable" for threatening to cut financial aid to a Hamas-led Palestinian government, Saudi Arabia's foreign minister said on Tuesday.
"The European Union insisted on having elections in Palestine, and this is the result of what they asked for," Prince Saud al-Faisal told reporters in Malaysia.
"Now to come around and say [they] don't accept the will of the people that was expressed through democratic means seems an unreasonable position to take," he said.
He said that aid cuts "would be a disastrous thing" for Palestine, which relies on foreign aid to meet its yearly budget of about $1.3 billion.
The prince said that Riyadh would remain as the Palestinians? biggest Arab donor, adding that he is optimistic Hamas might assume a more moderate stance.
"I can't believe that they won't act responsibly as a government," al-Faisal said. "We need cool heads now, rather than reactions that close the door to a peaceful settlement."
European nations are urging Hamas to recognise Israel as a state and renounce violence ? demands that the militant group refused.
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