Amid a sense of political euphoria in Israel following a Fox News interview with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the Kingdom’s top diplomat reiterated his country’s position on Palestine and Israel.
The Saudi foreign minister, Faisal bin Farhan linked, in his country’s speech at the UN General Assembly on Saturday, justice for Palestinians to peace and stability in the Middle East.
“The stability of the region rests on a just and comprehensive solution for the Palestinian cause,” he said, and “the establishment of a Palestinian state based on 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital.”
Unexpected
The statement came as a surprise to the Israeli representative who attended the talk, “even though the speech is on Shabbat.”
“The comment comes amid increased talk about a potential historic normalization deal between Saudi Arabia and Israel, with Riyadh said to demand Israeli concessions to Palestinians that nevertheless fall short of giving them an independent state,” the Times of Israel newspaper commented.
Though he refrained from mentioning Israel by name, Bin Farhan said that his country,
“rejects and condemns all the unilateral steps that constitute a blatant violation of international laws and which contribute to the collapse of regional and international peace efforts and are hindering the path of diplomatic solutions.”
Bin Salman’s Interview
In an interview with the conservative US media channel, Fox News on Wednesday, September 20, Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman spoke about Palestine and normalization with Israel.
“For us, the Palestinian issue is very important”, and “we need to solve that part,” Bin Salman said.
“We got to see where we go.. we hope that will reach a place, that it will ease the life of the Palestinians, (and) get Israel as a player in the Middle East,” he added, regarding possible normalization with Israel.
“If we have a breakthrough, reaching a deal that gives the Palestinians their needs and (making) the region calm, we’ve got to work with whoever’s there.”
The latter emphasis was an answer to the question on whether the Saudis are willing to work with the likes of a rightwing leader like Netanyahu and his government.
(The Palestine Chronicle)
