RIYADH, 6 April 2007 — US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a California Democrat, paid a visit to the Shoura Council yesterday where leaders of the two political bodies pledged to exchange information and conduct more bilateral visits.
Shoura members also broached the subject of the difficulties in Saudis obtaining visas to visit or study in the United States, a process that in the best situation usually takes four or five months.
The tour of Saudi Arabia’s appointed legislative advisory council by the third-highest ranking elected US official took place after a meeting with Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah. Pelosi said that in her meeting with the king, which followed her controversial visit to Syria, the two discussed primarily the situation in Iraq and the Israeli-Palestinian issue.
Pelosi came to the Kingdom with a delegation that included Rep. Tom Lantos (D-CA), head of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, and Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN), the first Muslim elected to the US Congress. Saleh Bin-Humaid, the chairman of the Shoura Council, briefed Pelosi and her delegation on the functioning of the 150-member advisory body.
While meeting with Shoura officials, Pelosi was informed about the increasing difficulty of Saudi nationals in obtaining visas to travel to the United States after 9/11.
Speaking to The Associated Press, Shoura Council member Ihsan Buhulaiga expressed hope that Pelosi would take into consideration the concerns of Saudi students and visitors to America.
“We told her there should be some movement on the visa issue because while we understand the security needs of the US, the situation is unacceptable,” he said.
Pelosi, the first woman House speaker, was invited to sit on the Shoura chairman’s chair. “It’s a nice view from here,” she was quoted as saying. “This chair is very comfortable,” she added with a smile.
When asked to reflect on the fact that the Shoura Council has no women members, Pelosi, a staunch feminist, seemed to steer away from provocative comments. “I am very pleased that after 200-plus years in the US, we finally have a speaker (who is a woman),” she replied. “It took us a long time.”
Pelosi said she did bring up the issue of women’s rights during her trip, without elaborating.
Pelosi’s visit to the Kingdom after her talks with Syrian President Bashar Assad is an indication, according to Shoura member Osama Al-Kurdi, of the leadership role the US Congress sees Saudi Arabia playing in the push to resolve the region’s myriad issues, most notably in restarting the Palestinian-Israeli peace process.
Al-Kurdi said Pelosi told Shoura members that she recognizes this role and considered the Saudi peace initiative — first floated by King Abdullah when he was crown prince in 2002 — a positive step. He added that the Kingdom is able to leverage its strength in relations with the US for the cause of peace and stability in the region.
“She recognizes the important role King Abdullah plays in the Middle East and the Muslim world,” said Al-Kurdi. “She also appreciated the Arab peace initiative and hoped that the international community will take it forward.”
Saudi Arabia led the drive to re-launch the peace initiative amid growing concern in the Kingdom about sectarian violence in Iraq.
Analysts have said the king’s description of the “occupation of Iraq” reflected his belief that the US administration’s strategy in Iraq was doomed and his frustration over President George Bush’s rejection of a Saudi-brokered power-sharing deal between US-backed Palestinian moderates and Hamas.
On Wednesday, King Abdullah and Pelosi discussed “the whole range of developments on the regional and international scenes, chiefly those pertaining to the Palestinian issue and the situation in Iraq,” the official Saudi Press Agency said.
Spokesperson for the US delegation Nadeam Elshami said Pelosi’s talks with the king covered “issues in conjunction with the Arab summit and peace and stability in the Middle East,” including Iraq as well as the conflicts in Darfur and Somalia.
Pelosi also had a meeting with Interior Minister Prince Naif. The contents of their talks were not disclosed.
oh: Masha'Allah.....although I was expecting SS(HA) cos its been over a month since his last one.
