"The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia stood wholeheartedly by the brotherly Afghani people during their heroic struggle to achieve independence. This struggle accorded Afghanistan a special status in the hearts of the supporters of the rights of people everywhere to freedom and independence, until God Almighty made possible the victory and Afghanistan regained its independence and freedom.

"It is to be regretted that the government of the Taleban made use of Afghanistan's special status, not to build up brotherly relations or set up high Islamic values, but to make its land a center to attract and train a number of misguided people of all nationalities, and in particular, from among the citizens of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, in order to carry out criminal acts that are against every tenet of Shariah [Islamic Law] and faith: moreover, Taleban has continued to refuse to hand those criminals over to justice.

"The Taleban government, after all that has happened and is still happening, continues to use its lands to harbor, arm, and encourage those criminals to go on with their terrorist operations, terrorizing innocent people and spreading fear and destruction throughout the world, causing harm to Islam and besmirching the name of Muslims everywhere.

"The Taleban government has paid no attention to the calls and pleas of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to stop harboring, training and encouraging criminals. It does not care about other efforts and appeals from others on this issue, the latest among them a call from Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf.

"Therefore, the government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia announces that all relations with the Taleban government have been severed.

"With this announcement, Saudi Arabia nevertheless affirms its continuous stance with the Afghani people and its constant support for whatever can achieve security, stability and prosperity for Afghanistan."