Crown Prince warns of joining nuclear club

RIYADH: Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has said if Iran develops a nuclear weapon, Riyadh will follow suit — just days before he arrives in Washington for talks with US President Donald Trump.

“Saudi Arabia does not want to acquire any nuclear bomb, but without a doubt, if Iran developed a nuclear bomb, we will follow suit as soon as possible,” Prince Mohammed told CBS television in an interview.

The upstart Saudi royal likened Iran’s supreme leader to Adolf Hitler, warning he could sweep through the Middle East like Germany’s Nazis did at the start of World War II.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei “wants to create his own project in the Middle East, very much like Hitler who wanted to expand at the time”, said the 32-year-old heir to the throne.

“Many countries around the world and in Europe did not realise how dangerous Hitler was until what happened, happened,” he said.

“I don’t want to see the same events happening in the Middle East.”

Excerpts from the interview, which will air in full on CBS tomorrow, came as the Trump administration threatens to end the Iran nuclear deal, which could leave Tehran free to advance its development of atomic weapons.

Iran, under pressure from European powers to assuage US worries about its adherence to the nuclear deal, hit back at the prince.

“These words are worthless ... because they come from a simple mind full of illusions who speaks only bitterness and lies,” said Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Bahram Ghasemi.

Prince Mohammed, the son and heir of King Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud, is scheduled to arrive in Washington on Monday ahead of talks with Mr Trump on Tuesday.

The brazen prince has rocked Saudi Arabia since his father became king in 2015 and named him defence minister.

Last year, he was elevated to crown prince, and is seen as the effective ruler under his 82-year-old father.

His moves have shaken up the kingdom — declaring a liberalisation of social mores from the stifling ideology of Wahhabi Islam, and moving to modernise a heavily top-down economy.

But in a move to consolidate his power over rival royals, he also locked up many princes and top businessmen for months to force them to hand over fortunes and accept him as the country’s future sovereign.