"Saudi Arabia first warned Washington that a U.S. attack on Iraq could lead to chaos when Vice President Dick Cheney met with the then Crown Prince Abdullah bin Abdulaziz on the eve of invasion, says a Saudi diplomat in Washington.

"Now Abdullah is king, and his aides fear Iraq will become a "Bosnia-like conflict" or a regional cold war, pitting Shiite Iran against Saudi Arabia and other Sunni states, says the diplomat, who demanded anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue. He says Riyadh has made clear to Washington that if the United States withdraws and Iraq collapses, the Saudis would be "forced" to protect Sunnis from persecution, leading to the "de facto partition" of Iraq, with Iran controlling the other half."

Arf