British Prime Minister David Cameron said the world would "come together" to prevent Iran closing the Strait of Hormuz oil shipment route and that Russia should take a tougher stance against Syria during his visit to Saudi Arabia on Friday, Reuters reported.
Iran last month threatened to blockade the strategically vital strait if it was subjected to any new international sanctions over its nuclear programme, which it says is for civilian use, but which Western countries believe is aimed at building an atomic bomb.
"In terms of the Straits of Hormuz, it is in the interests of the whole world that those straits are open and I'm sure if there was any threat to close them the world would come together and make sure they stayed open," said Cameron in a television interview also attended by Reuters.
Cameron is in the Saudi capital Riyadh for a one-day visit to the world's top oil exporter, where he met King Abdullah and other top members of the royal family.
Cameron said he and King Abdullah had discussed the situation with Iran during their meeting, which lasted two hours, and that they had also discussed the situations in Somalia, Yemen and Syria.
Asked about whether the United Nations would impose a tougher resolution on the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad over its violent repression of civilians, he said the Security Council needed to take a stronger line.
"We've been unable to make progress frankly because there have been some countries on the Security Council that have vetoed or threatened to veto proper resolutions on Syria," he said, singling out Russia.
Cameron said the Arab League, which has imposed sanctions on Syria and sent monitors to the country to observe the situation there, had taken a "leading role" in bringing the issue to the world's attention.
"We stand ready as a permanent member of the Security Council to take fresh resolutions to that council based on what the Arab League is doing, what the Arab League is saying, and daring others if they want to veto this resolution to try and explain why they are willing to stand by and watch such appalling bloodshed by someone who has turned into such an appalling dictator," he added.
Cameron's visit came as Saudi security forces late on Thursday shot dead a protester in the kingdom's Eastern Province, which is home to its Shi'ite minority.
The kingdom's interior ministry said in a statement that the man was killed during an exchange of fire after security forces were attacked with petrol bombs.
The kingdom has in recent months accused an unnamed foreign power, widely understood as meaning Iran, of backing unrest in the province.
Tensions have heightened between the West and Iran since the Arab uprisings began shaking the Middle East and North Africa last year.
Last month London passed tough sanctions against Tehran over its nuclear programme.
Saudi Arabia has also fallen out with the Islamic republic, which it fears is using the Arab uprisings to alter the balance of power in the region.
It also points to the U.S. discovery of an alleged plot by Iranian agents to assassinate the Saudi ambassador in Washington, which Iran denies.
During his visit, Cameron also met Crown Prince Nayef, who is next in line to King Abdullah as leader of the conservative Islamic kingdom, as well as foreign minister, Prince Saud al-Faisal, and the intelligence minister, Prince Muqrin bin Abdulaziz.
Saudi Arabia is a major buyer of British weaponry, and British defence sources say negotiations are under way on the Saudi purchase of 48 Typhoon Eurofighter aircraft. The Saudis agreed to buy 72 Typhoons from BAE Systems as part of the Salaam deal in 2006.
The Saudi armed forces chief of staff said in November that the kingdom was preparing to rebuild its armed forces in response to the "risks surrounding our country".
Bilateral trade is worth 16 billion pounds a year and Saudi investment in the U.K. is worth more than 62 billion pounds.
Nayef, interior minister since 1975, has led Riyadh's campaign against Islamic militants over the past decade and has also developed a reputation for intolerance of dissent.
In a statement released on Friday, Amnesty International called on Cameron to raise human rights issues with the Saudi leaders.
...