Saudi Arabia will not normalize diplomatic relation with Israel until the Jewish state has signed an internationally recognized peace accord with the Palestinians
In a deal brokered by U.S. last week the UAE became the first Gulf state to normalize relations with Israel opening the door for the possibility of similar deals with other Arab states including Saudi Arabia.
Despite pressure from U.S. to announce a possible similar deal, Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan ruled out the possibility until the Palestinian issue is resolved.
During a visit to Berlin, Prince Faisal told reporters “Peace must be achieved with the Palestinians” on the basis of international agreements as a pre-condition for any normalization of relations.”Once that is achieved all things are possible,” he added.
Despite some shifts in Saudi- Israel relations under the rule of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in recent years, Saudi Arabia has maintained its distance from Israel publicly.
