Saudi King Abdullah vowed in his first television interview as monarch to eliminate al Qaeda even if the battle took decades to win, condemning the terror network as "the work of the devil".
Abdullah also told US channel ABC in an interview due to be broadcast later Friday that Riyadh would work to bring down oil prices whose rise he admitted had helped Saudi Arabia while damaging other countries.
The new king, who took over from late half-brother Fahd in April, insisted Saudi Arabia was doing all it could to halt terror following the September 11 attacks on the United States, in which most of the hijackers were Saudis.
He said Saudi would "fight the terrorists and those who support them or condone their actions for 10, 20 or 30 years if we have to, until we eliminate this scourge".
Abdullah, seen by some observers as a relative moderate in the Saudi ruling family, unequivocally condemned al Qaeda, led by the Saudi-born Osama bin Laden.
"Madness and evil, it is the work of the devil," he said.
According to official Saudi figures, at least 90 civilians, 47 security personnel and 121 militants have died in unrest linked to militants in Saudi Arabia and an ensuing crackdown on terror by the authorities.
The monarch also defended Saudi Arabia's oil policy. Abdullah said Saudi Arabia was now producing 10 million barrels a day to meet increasing demand on oil markets and bring down prices.
"Without a doubt we have benefited financially, but we believe that the damage to other countries is tremendous and we don't believe that the prices should be at these levels," the king said.
On the regional front, echoing statements by other Saudi officials, Abdullah said that Iran was a "friendly country" and at the same time expressed concern about the Shia country's role in Iraq.
"We hope that Iran will not become an obstacle to peace and security in Iraq. This is what we hope for and this is what we believe the Iraqi (people) hope for," he said.
Abdullah described US President George W. Bush - Riyadh's key international ally - as a "friend whose friendship I value and treasure" but also did not shy away from criticising aspects of US foreign policy.
With just hours to go before Saturday's referendum on Iraq's constitution, Abdullah made a thinly-disguised call on Baghdad to take into account the concerns of the country's Sunni Arab minority.
"Iraq is composed of various ethnic and religious groups and factions. What we ask for is that justice and equality prevail among all of the ethnic groups in Iraq."
Saudi Arabia itself is a mainly Sunni country with a notable Shiite minority, a factor that has amplified its fears over Iran's role in Iraq after the fall of Saddam Hussein.
"We believe that all Iraq is one country in which all Iraqis live in peace and justice," said Abdullah in the interview, excerpts of which were published on ABC's website.
Abdullah appeared to go out of his way in the interview, to be broadcast in full on Friday night, to present a relaxed and friendly face to the outside world.
He said he has dispensed with the traditional royal protocol of having his subjects kiss his hand. "I have tremendous distaste for such matters because I believe that one only bows before God, not another human being," he said.
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