Saudis offer Moscow billions to break with Tehran: report
Agence France-Presse - 16 July, 2008
www.gulfinthemedia.com/index.php?id=416765&news_type=Top&lang=en

Saudi Arabia has offered to buy Russian arms worth 2.4 billion dollars (1.5
billion euros) if Moscow stops supporting Iran, a Russian newspaper reported
Tuesday, citing diplomatic sources.

"The kingdom's government advised Moscow to cut back its cooperation with
Tehran, and in exchange it held out the prospect of profitable contracts
with Saudi Arabia," the daily business newspaper Kommersant wrote.

A spokesman for Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin denied the report.

"Any claims that military-technical cooperation between Russia and Saudi
Arabia is in any way linked to Russian-Iranian dialogue are inappropriate
and do not correspond to reality," the Interfax news agency quoted Putin
spokesman Dmitry Peskov as saying.

The newspaper report came one day after Putin met with the general secretary
of Saudi Arabia's Security Council, Prince Bandar bin Sultan.

Citing sources in Russia's defence industry, the newspaper said Saudi Arabia
was ready to buy at least 100 BMP-3 combat vehicles, 150 T-90 tanks and 160
Mi-17, Mi-26 and Mi-35 helicopters.

Kommersant put the total value of the equipment at about 2.4 billion
dollars.

Moscow has opposed stiffer international sanctions on Iran for its nuclear
programme, which Tehran says is civilian in nature.

Relations between Russia and Saudi Arabia -- a traditional US ally -- have
warmed considerably in recent years.