Dubai: Saudi Arabia remains open to fully normalise ties with Israel on the condition of Palestinian statehood, Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan said on Saturday.
Following the UAE and Bahrain’s decision to establish full diplomatic relations with Israel, there has been broad speculation that Saudi Arabia would soon follow. But for the Kingdom, Palestinian statehood remains a prerequisite to normalisation, Al Arabiya reported.
Sustainable
“We’ve always been open to full normalisation with Israel, and we think Israel will take its place in the region, but in order for that to happen, and for it to be sustainable, we do need the Palestinians to get their state and we need to settle that situation,” Prince Faisal told the International Institute for Security Studies Manama Conference on Saturday.
Prince Faisal said getting Israelis and Palestinians back to the negotiating table is key, adding that a “Palestinian state will deliver true peace in the region, and that should be the focus.”
In September, the Abraham Accords were signed on the White House lawn in Washington, DC, formalising the historic peace agreement between the two Gulf states and Israel that was brokered by the US.