Al Saud, US seek regime change in Syria: Analyst

A political analyst has emphasized that both Saudi Arabia and the United States are unified in the objective of pursuing “regime change” in the crisis-hit Syria, Press TV reports.

“I think in principle the United States is fully in league with the Saudis in desiring regime change in Syria,” Mark Dankof, a broadcaster and commentator said in an interview with Press TV on Saturday.

The analyst further said Saudi Arabia “utilized” the Takfiri agents operating in Syria to carry out the “false-flag” chemical attack near the Syrian capital, Damascus, in August in an attempt to set the stage for the US and Europeans to launch a military strike against the Arab country but this “strategy failed, it didn’t work.”

He further pointed to the role of Riyadh and Washington in the upcoming Geneva II peace conference on Syria which is scheduled to be held in Geneva next month, reiterating that both of them will again be “committed together to the idea that there should be a regime change” in the country.

On October 22, Saudi Arabia’s spymaster Prince Bandar bin Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al Saud said his country plans to make a ‘major shift’ in its dealings with the US over Iran, Bahrain, Palestine and Syria, saying that Riyadh ties with Washington have been deteriorating for a while over several issues.

A source close to Bandar bin Sultan noted that Saudi Arabia’s new stance is in objection to Washington’s inaction on the war in Syria and the issue of Palestine.

A Russian diplomatic source, speaking on condition of anonymity, also said on October 5 that the August chemical attack near the Syrian capital was carried out by Saudi Arabian intelligence agents.

Syria has been gripped by deadly unrest since 2011. According to reports, the US and Saudi Arabia, along with their Western and regional allies, are supporting the Takfiri groups operating inside the country.