Saudi Arabia would allow the United States to use its air bases and an important operations center in a possible war with Iraq, the New York Times reported on Saturday, citing senior U.S. military officials. "I firmly believe the Saudis will give us all the cooperation we need, and every indication I have is we're getting pretty much what we've asked for," Gen. John P. Jumper, the Air Force chief of staff, said in an interview with the newspaper, published in its online edition.

Maj. Sandy Troeber, a Pentagon  spokeswoman, would not confirm Saudi Arabia had agreed to provide its military bases for possible U.S. operations against Iraq. She told Reuters, "Saudi Arabia has been a strong ally to the United States and also in support of the war on terrorism."

Saudi embassy officials in Washington were not available for comment.

U.S.-Saudi relations have been strained since the Sept. 11 strikes in which many of the attackers were Saudi-born. Publicly, Saudi officials have been noncommittal about aiding U.S. military operations in any Iraq war and have at times issued contradictory statements.

In recent months, U.S. military planners have been scouting out alternative sites in the Gulf in case Saudi Arabia refused to be the main staging area for U.S. forces in a new conflict with Iraq, as the kingdom was during the 1991 Gulf War .

But the Times reported U.S. commanders said they had private assurances they could use a sophisticated command center at Prince Sultan Air Base outside Riyadh, the capital.

U.S. military commanders also said allied airplanes would be allowed to fly from Saudi bases and use the nation's airspace for missions in an Iraq war, the newspaper said.

Last month, Saudi's Prince Saud said the kingdom would not allow the United States to use its facilities for an attack against Iraq. The remarks contradicted earlier statements in which he indicated the United States could use Saudi bases if the war was approved by the United Nations .

PHOTO CAPTION

An F-14D Tomcat takes off from the US Navy aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln in the Persian Gulf in this Nov.11, 2002 file photo. The Pentagon  has ordered a major military force to the Persian Gulf in preparation for a possible war with Iraq. Thousands of troops, two aircraft carrier battle groups and scores of combat aircraft have received orders since Christmas to ready themselves. One carrier may be the Abraham Lincoln which recently left the Gulf and is now in port in Perth, Australia. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil)