By Matt Spetalnick
RIYADH (Reuters) - U.S. President George W. Bush headedtowards Saudi Arabia on Friday to renew his appeal to help tamerecord oil prices and shore up Arab support for his efforts tocontain Iran's growing influence.
As Bush flew into Riyadh, the White House said the UnitedStates, the world's largest energy consumer, had agreed to helpprotect the oil resources of the world's top oil exporter andhelp it in developing peaceful nuclear energy.
"The United States and Saudi Arabia have agreed tocooperate in safeguarding the kingdom's energy resources byprotecting key infrastructure, enhancing Saudi border security,and meeting (its) expanding energy needs," a White Housestatement said.
"The U.S. and Saudi Arabia will sign a memorandum ofunderstanding in the area of peaceful civil nuclear energycooperation."
The announcement came as Bush ended a three-day trip toIsrael where he vowed to oppose Iran's nuclear ambitions.Tehran says its programme is peaceful but Bush said it would be"unforgivable" if Iran were allowed to get the bomb.
While Bush is likely to find common ground on Iran when hemeets King Abdullah, the Saudi monarch is expected to rebufffor the second time this year the president's face-to-face callto get OPEC pumping more oil to world markets.
Since Bush's last visit in January, oil prices have jumpednearly $30 to around $126 a barrel, adding to U.S. recessionfears and boosting political pressure on the White House in ayear when voters will pick Bush's successor.
Stephen Hadley, Bush's national security adviser, said thepresident would tell the king that oil suppliers must, fortheir own interests, "take into account the economic health oftheir customers who pay these prices".
NON-PROLIFERATION
King Abdullah will host Bush at his sprawling horse farm onthe outskirts of Riyadh, the centrepiece of a two-day visitthat the White House says is mostly to pay tribute to 75 yearsof formal ties between Washington and the Islamic kingdom.
But the two leaders will have a packed agenda as they tryto mend relations that deteriorated in the aftermath of theSeptember 11 attacks in 2001 and the U.S.-led invasion of Iraqin 2003.
Apart from the agreements to cooperate on nuclear energyand oil security, the White House said Saudi Arabia had agreedto two global initiatives, one to combat nuclear terrorism andanother to combat the spread of weapons of mass destruction.
For his part, King Abdullah will be looking forreassurances of Bush's commitment to push a $1.4 billion (719million pound) U.S. arms sale through an opposition-led U.S.Congress.
Democrats have threatened to block the deal to put pressureon Saudi Arabia to increase oil output. OPEC members haveblamed high oil prices on speculators and not any shortage ofsupply.
Bush's stop in Saudi Arabia precedes a weekend visit toEgypt to meet Palestinian leaders.
Bush will press the Saudis to do more to support thefaltering U.S.-sponsored Israeli-Palestinian peace talks. Hewants to achieve a deal before he leaves office in January, butthe deadline is widely regarded as unrealistic.
Bush also wants Saudi Arabia and other Arab nations tostrengthen ties with Iraq, something they have been reluctantto do since the U.S.-led invasion that many of them opposed.
(Editing by Kevin Liffey)
