According to top US officials, the future of Saudi-Israeli normalization is directly linked to justice for Palestinians.
Unlike repeated Israeli claims that Palestine does not seem to be important for the Saudis as far as normalization with Israel is concerned, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the opposite in a recent interview.
In an interview with the podcast ‘Pod Save the World’ on Wednesday, Blinken said that the Palestinian issue would play a central role in any future normalization agreement with Israel, Israeli media reported.
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“It’s … clear from what we hear from the Saudis that if this process is to move forward, the Palestinian piece is going to be very important,” Blinken said.
Blinken also reportedly said that “in our judgment, of course, that must – needs to involve a two-state solution.”
According to the Israeli newspaper, Haaretz, Blinken also said that a normalization agreement would be “good for the region (but) normalization (..) cannot be a substitute for Israel and the Palestinians resolving their differences.”
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This position articulated by Blinken is consistent with his previous position on the issue.
During the visit by Israel’s Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer to Washington in August, the US Administration told Israel that, in order to finalize a normalization deal with the Saudis, Tel Aviv would have to make substantial concessions to the Palestinians.
(The Palestine Chronicle)
