Saudi Arabia: No normalization with Israel until peace with Palestinians
Image by Getty images
(JTA) — The king of Saudi Arabia has thrown cold water on the assurances of Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of President Donald Trump who is leading Middle East policy, that all Arab countries will follow the United Arab Emirates’ lead and normalize ties with Israel.
Saudi Arabian King Salman bin Abdulaziz said his country would not pursue normalization with Israel until there is peace between Israel and the Palestinians.
The king told Trump in a phone call Sunday that his kingdom appreciates efforts made by the United States to bring about peace but that Saudi Arabia would like to see a peace treaty based on the Arab Peace Initiative, which was proposed by Saudi Arabia in 2002, the state-run Saudi Press Agency reported.
The conversation comes on the heels of the U.S.-brokered normalization agreement between Israel and the United Arab Emirates, and Trump’s announcement Friday that Israel and the Muslim-majority Kosovo would establish diplomatic relations.
Saudi Arabia opened up its air space to allow an airplane carrying Israeli and U.S. diplomats to fly through its airspace, offering some hope that it might be open to changing its relationship with Israel. The kingdom later announced that it would allow any airplane from any country arriving or departing from the UAE to use its airspace.
The post Saudi Arabia’s king tells Trump his country will not pursue normalization with Israel until there is peace with Palestinians appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
This is a moment of great uncertainty. Here’s what you can do about it.
We hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, we’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s independent Jewish news this Passover. All donations are being matched by the Forward Board - up to $100,000.
This is a moment of great uncertainty for the news media, for the Jewish people, and for our sacred democracy. It is a time of confusion and declining trust in public institutions. An era in which we need humans to report facts, conduct investigations that hold power to account, tell stories that matter and share honest discourse on all that divides us.
With no paywall or subscriptions, the Forward is entirely supported by readers like you. Every dollar you give this Passover is invested in the future of the Forward — and telling the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
The Forward doesn’t rely on funding from institutions like governments or your local Jewish federation. There are thousands of readers like you who give us $18 or $36 or $100 each month or year.
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
