Saudi Arabia, frustrated by what it apparently regarded as policy setbacks over Syria, Iran and Palestinian statehood, abruptly canceled its turn to speak this week at the annual United Nations General Assembly meeting.

Saudi Arabia, frustrated by what it apparently regarded as policy setbacks over Syria, Iran and Palestinian statehood, abruptly canceled its turn to speak this week at the annual United Nations General Assembly meeting, the U.S. daily The New York Times reported Thursday citing diplomatic officials and Arab news agencies.

They said it was the first time that the Saudis, who are strong American allies, had scrapped that opportunity to state their positions on world affairs, not even submitting a written statement in lieu of a speech.

Diplomatic officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the delicacy of the matter, said Saudi Arabia opted not to participate partly because it did not want to publicly criticize the Security Council over what the kingdom had judged to be a weak response to the conflict in Syria and the use of chemical weapons there.

The Council unanimously approved a resolution last Friday aimed at pressuring the Syrian government to keep its promise to give up its chemical weapons. But the measure does not automatically threaten military force for noncompliance and does not specifically call for the Syrian government to be held criminally accountable for the use of chemical weapons, notably in a mass killing outside Damascus on Aug. 21.

In the meantime, Saud al-Faisal hailed on Friday what he called "Iranian statements of openness to the Gulf states" during his participation in a ceremony held in Rome on the occasion of the 80 anniversary of the establishment of Saudi-Italian relations.

"We heard the new Iranian tone, and the desire to improve relations with neighboring countries and in the global context. We welcome this trend very much... if the saying is translated to deeds,  matters will proceed towards the best," Al-Riyadh newspaper quoted him as saying.

The Saudi foreign minister, Prince Saud al-Faisal, had been scheduled to deliver his country’s speech on Monday in the U.N.. No explanation was given for the cancellation, and efforts to contact Saudi diplomats by telephone at the country’s United Nations mission were unsuccessful.