DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (CNN) — Former Saudi intelligence chief Prince Turki al-Faisal and Emirati presidential adviser Anwar Kargash have commented on reports circulating on social media of a rift between Saudi Arabia and Riyadh. Abu Dhabi.
This came in a session during the Arab Strategic Forum in Dubai on Wednesday, where journalist Imad El-Din Adeeb asked a question in which he said: “On social media, we see that Saudi Arabia and the Emirates have differences of opinion. But in public forums there are smiles and disagreements?”
Prince Turki al-Faisal replied: “I will answer you.” He turned to Anwar Kargash and asked him: Brother Anwar, did we have a disagreement? This prompted applause from the audience, and the Emirati adviser responded: “Everything that happens in Saudi Arabia is positive for the Emirates, and everything that happens in the Emirates is positive for Saudi Arabia… and what happens in the region is strengthening the position of the Arabs.”
Turki Al-Faisal said, “The number of flights between Saudi Arabia and the Emirates and the congestion of these flights reflect reality, and an Emirati citizen is considered a Saudi and a Saudi citizen an Emirati.”
Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan, in a report published by the Wall Street Journal last March, spoke of growing differences with regional partner the United Arab Emirates. He did not understand how “deep the relationship” between the two Gulf countries was, “exaggerated in drama” and “based on unnamed sources”, and denied reports that “we have a very strong partnership with the UAE”, saying the differences were due to economic competition, complementing each other.
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