Saudi Crown Prince Calls for Increased Pressure on Iran

Mohammed bin Salman, the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, has urged the international community to increase political and economic pressure on Iran to prevent war in the region. In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, he stated that sanctions could exert more pressure on the Iranian government. The Wall Street Journal published parts of this interview on Thursday, April 9, indicating it took place earlier that week. The Crown Prince emphasized that to avoid military conflict, we must succeed in intensifying political and economic pressures. If our efforts fail, we will likely be at war with Iran within the next 10 to 15 years. Mohammed bin Salman, who is visiting the U.S. to meet with officials, also participated in a meeting with journalists and editorial board members of the New York Times on Tuesday. In this meeting, he asserted that the goal of Iran's nuclear program is to acquire nuclear weapons and that action must be taken now. He added that the Iranian government aims to do 'whatever it wants in the Middle East' without worrying about reactions from others. This comes as Iranian officials deny seeking nuclear weapons. The Sunni kingdom of Saudi Arabia has been engaged in a fierce rivalry with the Shiite government of Iran in recent years, with both countries standing against each other in proxy wars in Middle Eastern countries including Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, and Yemen. Saudi Arabia accuses Iran of pursuing expansionism in the region. In this context, Mohammed bin Salman has compared Ali Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran, to 'Hitler' in recent months. The Crown Prince previously stated, 'The lesson we learned from Europe is that appeasement does not work. We do not want a new Hitler in Iran to repeat what happened in Europe in the Middle East.' Mohammed Salman, who also holds the position of Minister of Defense of Saudi Arabia, has said that there must be a confrontation with the Islamic Republic under Ali Khamenei, which is expanding its borders. Meanwhile, the Islamic Republic of Iran blames Saudi Arabia and its allies for the main problems in the Middle East.