RIYADH Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad held talks here Saturday with Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz about the Middle East crisis and regional developments, the official SPA news agency reported.

Mahathir, who arrived earlier Saturday on an official visit to Saudi Arabia, and Prince Abdullah "reviewed the Palestinian issue and the fast-paced developments in the region," a reference to Iraq, SPA said.

It said the Malaysian premier, who was greeted on arrival by Riyadh governor Prince Salman bin Abdul Aziz, would spend several days in the kingdom.

Mahathir addressed the opening session of a high-level five-day economic symposium on the "Future Vision for the Saudi Economy" which was inaugurated Saturday by Crown Prince Abdullah.

Malaysian economic experiment

He told the gathering that oil would remain the main source of energy for a long time to come and urged the Muslim world to embrace science and technology in order to catch up with developed nations.

Mahathir also spoke about the Malaysian economic experiment and called on Saudi Arabia to forest the desert.

He also visited two Malaysian Siamese twins who have been separated at a Riyadh hospital with the support of Prince Abdullah. AFP