(Adds details, quotes, background, paragraphs 5-10) By Arshad Mohammed WASHINGTON, Oct 30 (Reuters) - The partition of Iraq would lead to ethnic cleansing and sectarian killing on a mass scale, and the United States should not leave Iraq abruptly, Saudi Arabia's ambassador to Washington said on Monday. "To envision that you can divide Iraq into three parts is to envision ethnic cleansing on a massive scale, sectarian killing on a massive scale," Prince Turki al-Faisal said as he answered questions after a Washington speech. "Since America came into Iraq uninvited, it should not leave Iraq uninvited." Prince Turki spoke just over a week before the Nov. 7 U.S. midterm elections, in part being fought over U.S. President George W. Bush's conduct of the war in Iraq, where sectarian violence rages more than three years after U.S.-led forces invaded to topple former dictator Saddam Hussein. The violence appears to be eroding U.S. public support for the war, a point U.S. officials including Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice have made to the Iraqis in an effort to spur Iraqi efforts to improve security and calm sectarian strife. The White House has made clear it believes partitioning Iraq is a bad idea and Bush himself has warned against sudden withdrawal. However, U.S. officials say they are open to ideas on how to improve the situation and a bipartisan panel -- the Iraq Study Group -- led by former Secretary of State James Baker is conducting a review that could lead to a change in policy. Prince Turki, who became Saudi ambassador to the United States last year, argued strenuously against a partition. "It is practically impossible for Iraq to be divided on sectarian lines or even on ethnic lines. There is just too much intermingling of Iraqis with each other in every part of Iraq," he said. "Those who call for a partition of Iraq are calling for a three-fold increase in the problems." While describing the Oct. 20 Saudi decision to set up a committee of princes to vote on future generations of kings and crown princes as a step forward, he rebuffed U.S. calls for accelerated democratic reforms in the Middle East. "We have chosen this progressive evolution because we believe it fits the needs and aspirations of our people. We are not in a hurry to experiment with foreign interpretations of democracy or methods of government," he said in the written text of his speech. "We will make mistakes along the way ... but they will be our mistakes, not someone else's." (Additional reporting by Kristin Roberts in Washington)
