US Senator’s Israel-Saudi junket
"The recognition of Israel by Saudi Arabia is only going to happen when MBS believes he has a reliable partner in the US, that we are going to be there through thick and thin."
Republican US Senator Lindsey Graham said on Monday that while an Israel–Saudi Arabia normalisation deal is possible, the window to strike it could close within a year.
Graham make the remarks at a press conference in Jerusalem, where he met Israeli leaders and conveyed messages from a sit-down with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh last week. He said the Biden administration will have to turn its attention to the presidential election as November 2024 nears, leaving it with less time to broker such a high-stakes agreement.
Riyadh publicly states it will not normalise until Israel agrees to a two-state solution with the Palestinians. It has also issued a rash of public statements condemning Israeli policies toward the Palestinians since the current Netanyahu government was established. However, Saudi officials have privately indicated that they are willing to normalise ties if the right conditions are met.
This message was apparently passed along to Graham as well. He said on Monday that “Saudi Arabia is ready to move forward with Israel if they can get a relationship with [the US].”
The Republican senator said the boosted relationship with Washington that Riyadh wants would likely include new defence and free trade agreements, as well as cooperation from the US in the development of a civilian nuclear program.
He said, “The recognition of Israel by Saudi Arabia is only going to happen when MBS believes he has a reliable partner in the US, that we are going to be there through thick and thin.”
Graham also admitted that the US warming ties with Saudi Arabia would likely face pushback from Democrats in Congress, who have increasingly taken issue with Riyadh’s human rights record.
Graham said he relayed to the crown prince: “One of the best things you can do to change the image of Saudi Arabia is to normalise a relationship with Israel – that would be the ultimate game-changer.”
Asked whether MBS raised the Palestinian issue, Graham dodged the question, but said the Abraham Accords proved the Palestinians no longer have a veto over Arab states forging diplomatic ties with Israel.
He sought to downplay the Saudis’ normalisation agreement with Iran, saying it was merely an attempt by Riyadh to “calm the waters in the region” and that the Gulf kingdom has “no illusions” regarding the Islamic republic.
However, Iran on Monday extended an invitation for Saudi King Salman to visit Tehran and a senior Hamas delegation was slated to arrive in Riyadh this week, indicating that the kingdom’s interests are far from aligned with those in Washington and Jerusalem.
TIMES OF ISRAEL
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