Secretary of State Antony Blinken stated on Tuesday that Saudi Arabia's de facto leader had reaffirmed his "strong interest" in ties with Israel but would first like to see the end of the conflict in Gaza and a "timeline" for the establishment of a Palestinian state.
Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman © Mena Today
Secretary of State Antony Blinken stated on Tuesday that Saudi Arabia's de facto leader had reaffirmed his "strong interest" in ties with Israel but would first like to see the end of the conflict in Gaza and a "timeline" for the establishment of a Palestinian state.
"Specifically on normalization, the Crown Prince reiterated Saudi Arabia's strong interest in pursuing that," Blinken told the press in Doha, following his meeting with Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman in Riyadh. "But he was very clear in repeating to me that for that to happen, two things are necessary: the end of the conflict in Gaza and a clear and credible timeline for the creation of a Palestinian state," he emphasized.
As a leader among the Gulf Arab monarchies and a major player in the Middle East, Saudi Arabia does not recognize Israel but had engaged in talks with the United States, its key ally, on the potential normalization of relations with Israel.
Since October 7, the Saudi kingdom has conditioned the resumption of talks on a Gaza ceasefire and an agreement on an "irreversible" path to the creation of a Palestinian state.
During his previous visit to Saudi Arabia in January, Antony Blinken had also spoken of Riyadh's "clear interest" in continuing discussions on this matter.
"We understand the immense benefits for all parties involved that would come from further integrating Israel into the region, starting with the benefits for Israel," said Blinken, who is set to meet with Israeli leaders on Wednesday as part of his Middle East tour.
Saudi Arabia, the guardian of Islam's holiest sites, did not join the 2020 Abraham Accords negotiated by the United States, which allowed its neighbors Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates, as well as Morocco, to establish official ties with Israel.
An apparent drone attack - claimed by the Iranian-backed Houthi militia - hit central Tel Aviv in the early hours of Friday, killing one man and slightly wounding four others, the Israeli military and emergency services said.
Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince and de facto ruler, Mohammed bin Salman, called Iran's newly elected President Massoud Pezeshkian on Wednesday to congratulate him on his recent election victory, according to Saudi state media reports.
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant told his U.S. counterpart that military operations in the Gaza Strip have created conditions that would enable a hostage deal to be reached, Gallant's office said on Wednesday.
To make this website run properly and to improve your experience, we use cookies. For more detailed information, please check our Cookie Policy.
Necessary cookies enable core functionality. The website cannot function properly without these cookies, and can only be disabled by changing your browser preferences.