Al-Safi Dairy Co., a subsidiary of Al-Faisaliah Group, said it would not support the war in any way.

"We believe in the importance of peaceful solutions in keeping the danger of war and its misery away from this region," said Prince Mohammed bin Khaled al-Faisal, head of Al-Faisaliah, the 16th largest group in Saudi Arabia.

"The company has refused a request by a company responsible for supply of provisions to the coalition forces because this contradicts the company's humanitarian policies," Prince Mohammed said in a statement.

The company did not specify the nature of the contract or its value. Al-Safi has the world's largest integrated dairy farm with some 32,000 cows and produces various types of dairy products and juices.

A newspaper meanwhile said Saturday that transport firms in the Saudi eastern province have turned down offers and cancelled at least 40 contracts to rent their trucks for US-British forces.

The offers were made by Kuwaiti intermediaries to transport unspecified material through the Kuwaiti-Iraqi borders in favour of the coalition forces, Al-Eqtissadiah business daily reported, quoting unnamed sources.

Saudis are overwhelmingly opposed to the US-led war against neighbouring Iraq, seen by many here as a new colonisation of an Arab country.

SPACE.WIRE