GETTY•ANWAR HUSSEIN•EMPICS ENTERTAINMENT The ambassador warned of the repercussions if relations between both countries broke down

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Prince Mohammed bin Nawaf bin Abdulaziz, ambassador to the UK complained of a lack of "mutual respect" after a deal to train prison staff in the Gulf state was cancelled. In an unusual condemnation, the diplomat denounced leader of the opposition Jeremy Corbyn, accusing him of breaching respect by scuppering the trade deal with Riyadh. The furious prince also railed against an "alarming change in the way Saudi Arabia is discussed in Britain", warning that the wealthy kingdom would not be "lectured to" and urged respect for its strict system of Sharia law.

GETTY The prince is concerned with the change in attitude towards Saudi Arabia in Britain

He said: "One recent example of this mutual respect being breached was when Jeremy Corbyn, Leader of the Opposition, claimed that he had convinced Prime Minister David Cameron to cancel a prison consultancy contract with Saudi Arabia worth £5.9 million." "This coincided with speculation linking the contract's cancellation to a number of domestic events in the Kingdom. He warned: "If the extensive trade links between the two countries are going to be subordinate to certain political ideologies, then this vital commercial exchange is going to be at risk. "We want this relationship to continue but we will not be lectured to by anyone. Hasty decisions prompted by short-term gains often do more harm than good in the longer term."

GETTY Bin Abdulaziz accused Jeremy Corbyn of scuppering a trade deal between Britain and the Saudis

Mr Corbyn lobbied against the contract while urging the Government to intervene over a number of Saudi human rights abuses – including the planned execution of a protester, who was just 17 at the time of his alleged offence. He said the Government had been "shamed into" ditching the deal - which had initially been the only contract to survive Justice Secretary Michael Gove's axing of a controversial commercial body.

Just as we respect the local traditions, customs, laws and religion of Britain, we expect Britain to grant us this same respect. Bin Abdulaziz

But Downing street claimed it was a financial decision, unrelated to controversial human rights cases - including the threatened flogging of a 74-year-old British grandfather who breached strict alcohol laws. Karl Andree has served his sentence but is still locked up as Saudi officials wait to conduct the lashings, according to his family, despite David Cameron pledging a personal intervention. But the prince demanded that UK top brass respects the Gulf state's Sharia law. He said: "Our justice system is based on Sharia law and implemented by our independent judiciary. "Just as we respect the local traditions, customs, laws and religion of Britain, we expect Britain to grant us this same respect."

The Prime Minister has repeatedly defended the UK's close relations with the Saudis - pointing to the role its intelligence played in foiling a plot to bomb a freight aircraft in UK airspace. The prince said: "To further our shared strategic interests in the years ahead as we confront a variety of threats, it is crucial that Saudi Arabia be treated with the respect it has unwaveringly afforded the United Kingdom."