NEW YORK, July 27: The Bush administration officials are “voicing increasing anger at what they say has been Saudi Arabia’s counter-productive role in the Iraq war” and are accusing Riyadh of allowing foreign fighters to enter Iraq, the New York Times said in a report on Friday.

According to the Times the officials allege that beyond regarding Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al Maliki as an Iranian agent, the Saudis have offered financial support to Sunni groups in Iraq. Of an estimated 60 to 80 foreign fighters who enter Iraq each month, American military and intelligence officials allege that nearly half are coming from Saudi Arabia and that the Saudis have not done enough to stem the flow .

One senior administration official told the newspaper that he has seen evidence that Saudi Arabia is providing ‘financial support’ to opponents of Mr Maliki. He declined to say whether that support was going to antiUs fighters because, he said: “That would get into disagreements over who is an insurgent and who is not.”

Senior Bush administration officials said the American concerns would be raised next week when Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice and Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates make a rare joint visit to Saudi Arabia.

The New York Times said that the accounts of American concerns came from interviews with several senior administration officials.