US Secretary of State Antony Blinken. Photo: Collected
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Tuesday (21 May) he was unsure whether Israel was ready to make compromises to reach a deal to normalize relations with Saudi Arabia, notably on a pathway to a Palestinian state.
His frank assessment came after Jake Sullivan, President Joe Biden's national security advisor, visited both countries and briefed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on the "potential" for a historic accord.
But Blinken, who has repeatedly shuttled around the region since the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel, acknowledged doubts about whether Netanyahu and his hard-right government would satisfy the Saudis.
"I can't tell you whether Israel -- whether it's the prime minister or the country as a whole -- is prepared to do in this moment what would be necessary to actually realize normalization," Blinken told a Senate hearing.
"Because that requires an end to (the war in) Gaza and that requires a credible pathway to a Palestinian state," he said.
Both Netanyahu and then US president Donald Trump have hailed Israel's 2020 normalization with three Arab states -- the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Morocco -- as a signature achievement.
US and Israeli leaders see Saudi Arabia as a much bigger prize as the kingdom is the guardian of Islam's two holiest sites.
But Saudi Arabia, in return for a deal, wants progress on a Palestinian state -- an idea resisted by years by Netanyahu.
The kingdom also wants alliance-style security guarantees from the United States, which has long sought but struggled to reduce its Middle East footprint, as well as possible civilian nuclear cooperation.
On the US-Saudi negotiations, Blinken said, "I think we're at a point now where those agreements are very much within reach -- very close reach."
Messenger/Disha
