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Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/saudi/story/0,11599,1044402,00.html
Saudis Consider Nuclear Bomb
(Guardian-UK) Ewen MacAskill and Ian Traynor - Saudi Arabia has embarked on a strategic review that includes acquiring nuclear weapons. A strategy paper being considered at the highest levels in Riyadh sets out three options: * To acquire a nuclear capability as a deterrent; * To maintain or enter into an alliance with an existing nuclear power that would offer protection; * To try to reach a regional agreement on having a nuclear-free Middle East. UN officials and nuclear arms analysts said the Saudi review reflected Riyadh's estrangement with Washington and the weakening of its reliance on the U.S. nuclear umbrella. David Albright, director of the Institute for Science and International Security, a Washington thinktank, said he doubted whether the Saudis would try to build a nuclear bomb, preferring instead to try to buy a nuclear warhead. In 1988, Saudi Arabia bought intermediate-range missiles from China capable of reaching any part of the Middle East with a nuclear warhead. Four years ago, Saudi Arabia sent a defense team to Pakistan to tour its secret nuclear facilities and to be briefed by Abdul Qader Khan, the father of Pakistan's nuclear bomb.