 "Saudi Arabia ‘getting closer’ to normalising relations with Israel, says Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman")
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman told Fox News that ongoing talks with Israel are bringing the prospect of normalised ties between the two nations closer by the day, but that the treatment of Palestinians remains a “very important” problem that must be rectified.
Saudi Arabia is in talks with the US over a big arrangement in which it would normalise relations with Israel in exchange for a US defence pact and assistance in establishing its own civilian nuclear programme. The Saudis have stated that any agreement would need significant progress towards the establishment of a Palestinian state, which might be difficult to sell to Israel’s most devout and nationalist administration in its history.
During the conversation, Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler was asked what it would take to normalise relations with Israel.
“For us, the Palestinian issue is very important. We need to solve that part,” he said. In excerpts released ahead of the broadcast, he added that there had been “good negotiations” so far.
“We got to see where we go,” he said. “We hope that will reach a place, that it will ease the life of the Palestinians, get Israel as a player in the Middle East.”
The prince disputed that the discussions had been halted, claiming that “every day, we get closer.”
The interview aired shortly after President Joe Biden visited Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in New York for the UN General Assembly conference. Biden expressed worry about the treatment of Palestinians by Israel’s far-right government, pressing Netanyahu to take efforts to alleviate circumstances in the West Bank at a time of increased violence in the occupied area.
Netanyahu’s office said afterward that the meeting “mostly dealt with ways to establish an historic peace agreement between Israel and Saudi Arabia, which could greatly advance an end to the Arab-Israeli conflict and facilitate the establishment of an economic corridor to link Asia, the Middle East and Europe.”
On Wednesday, National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby told reporters that it was best for Israeli and Saudi leaders “to speak to how close they think they are, and where they think they are on the process,” noting that each country must make “sovereign decisions,” which they respect.
Prince Mohammed has granted relatively few interviews to Western media outlets, notably since the 2018 murder of Jamal Khashoggi, a Saudi dissident and Washington Post writer, by Saudi operatives in an operation likely ordered by the prince, according to US intelligence. The prince has categorically denied any participation.
In the five years afterwards, the monarchy has lost its pariah status as attention has switched to massive diplomatic endeavours.
In the interview on Wednesday, Prince Mohammed was asked if he was worried that Iran could eventually build a nuclear weapon and said “We are concerned of any country getting a nuclear weapon”.
“That’s a bad move,” he said. “They don’t need to get nuclear weapon because you cannot use it. Even if Iran get a nuclear weapon, any country use a nuclear weapon that means they are having a war with the rest of the world.”
But, when pressed as to whether Saudi Arabia would seek to do the same if Iran had a nuclear weapon, the prince responded, “We will have to get one”.
Biden, who had vowed to make Saudi Arabia a “pariah” over the Khashoggi killing while campaigning for president in 2020, has since patched up relations with the crown prince while seeking his help in controlling oil prices and managing other regional issues.
Saudi Arabia has remained largely neutral in the Ukraine war, providing humanitarian aid to the country and offering itself as a mediator between Moscow and Kyiv. The kingdom maintains good relations with the US, China and Russia in order to advance its own national interests.
