London — Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman, deputy premier and minister of defense, said he believes that Britain and Saudi Arabia would be much safer if their relationship was stronger and they worked to promote moderate Islam together.

In an exclusive interview with The Telegraph published on Tuesday, the Crown Prince said the historic relationship between Riyadh and London is linked by common defense and business interests.

The Crown Prince will be arriving in London on Wednesday to hold talks with Prime Minister Theresa May.

“The relationship between Saudi Arabia and Britain is historic and goes back to the foundation of the Kingdom,” he told The Telegraph’s Con Coughlin.

“We have a common interest that goes back to the earliest days of the relationship. Our relationship with Britain today is super.”

He added: “The British and Saudi people, along with the rest of the world, will be much safer if you have a strong relationship with Saudi Arabia.

“The extremists and the terrorists are linked through spreading their agenda,” he said, adding “We need to work together to promote moderate Islam.”

“We want to fight terrorism, and we want to fight extremism because we need to build stability in the Middle East,” he said.

Speaking ahead of his three-day visit to Britain, Crown Prince Muhammad spoke of business opportunities in the Kingdom and Britain.

“We believe that Saudi Arabia needs to be part of the global economy,” he explained.

“People need to be able to move freely, and we need to apply the same standards as the rest of the world.

“After Brexit there will be huge opportunities for Britain as a result of Vision 2030,” he said, in reference to a national plan in which Saudi Arabia aims to diversify its economy away from oil dependence.

“We want economic growth that will help the region to develop. Because of our dominant position, Saudi Arabia is the key to the economic success of the region.”

The Crown Prince spoke on the social changes currently being felt in Saudi Arabia that have come against a backdrop of sweeping reforms.

Crown Prince Muhammad said: “People in Saudi Arabia have changed a lot because they travel to countries like Britain and see a different way of life.”

Discussing regional issues, the Crown Prince said: “Britain is very supportive of our concerns regarding Iran and other regional security issues. It is always trying to help us and to fix things when there are issues.” — SG