Saudi Arabia in a tough position on recognizing the Palestinian state: Blinken
Last Updated on December 22, 2024 7:34 am
Saudi Arabia wants recognition of the Palestinian state as part of any agreement to establish diplomatic relations with Israel. US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is adamant on this condition.
Al Arabiya reported this in a report on Thursday (November 19).
The top US diplomat said that Israel-Saudi normalization is key to long-term stability in the Middle East and will ensure Israel’s security.
Blinken said that a Gaza ceasefire is essential first. Then we need to focus on long-term stability in the region, which will include Israel’s security. Of course, the key to this is normalizing relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia.
In an interview with Foreign Affairs published on Wednesday, Blinken said that he hopes the incoming Trump administration will complete such a deal.
But for that to happen, we need calm in Gaza — and this is a clear message from the Saudis — we also need a credible path to a Palestinian state, Blinken said.
Despite several meetings over the past year, most recently this week, with Saudi Arabia willing to ease its demands in exchange for normalization, Riyadh has repeatedly stated its firm stance on its demand for a Palestinian state based on the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem.
More than 44,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli shelling since October 7 last year. The Israelis have also routinely blocked humanitarian aid from entering Gaza, prompting recent warnings from the United States.
Washington and the Biden administration have been widely criticized for failing to call the Israeli assault on the Palestinian people a genocide.
During his first term, Donald Trump brought up the Abraham Accords to normalize diplomatic relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco and Sudan. It is believed that a similar agreement may be reached with Saudi Arabia in his second term.
In the meantime, Trump has sent his Middle East envoy, Steven Wittoff, to Saudi Arabia before taking office in the White House on January 20.
Princess Reema bint Bandar al-Saud, Saudi Arabia’s ambassador to Washington, told the World Economic Forum last month that normalization is impossible without an overwhelming path to the creation of a Palestinian state.
If Saudi Arabia withdraws from the condition of normalizing relations with Israel in an attempt to sign a defense agreement with the United States, Saudi Arabia’s image in the Muslim world could be damaged.