SECURITY GUARANTEES TAKE PRIORITY
Trump has stated he desires Saudi Arabia to hitch the Abraham Accords, calling Riyadh’s recognition of Israel a serious diplomatic prize. However early steps towards normalisation had been halted after Hamas’s October 2023 assault and the following Gaza warfare.
Saudi officers say the dominion’s place stays unchanged. Riyadh insists that establishing a Palestinian state should come first.
“A Palestinian state is a prerequisite for regional integration,” stated Manal Radwan, who heads the negotiating group on the Saudi international affairs ministry, on the Manama Dialogue in Bahrain. “We’ve stated it many instances, however we preserve being requested this query.”
As a substitute, the crown prince is anticipated to give attention to securing agency safety ensures from Washington. Qatar obtained an government order signed by Trump pledging US safety after Israel’s September strike, and analysts say different Gulf states need related commitments.
Riyadh additionally desires entry to superior air and missile defence techniques and is searching for approval to purchase F-35 fighter jets. Israel is at the moment the one Center Jap operator of the plane. The dominion can be pushing for entry to high-end chips wanted for its synthetic intelligence ambitions.
Saudi Arabia has pursued regional de-escalation because it rolls out main tourism, leisure and infrastructure tasks beneath its Imaginative and prescient 2030 diversification plan. That features renewed engagement with Iran.
Safety skilled Andreas Krieg of King’s School London stated the prince will goal to safe a sturdy US-Saudi defence framework that strengthens deterrence in opposition to Iran and helps his financial targets.
“In return, Washington will press for tighter guardrails on delicate China hyperlinks and tangible motion towards an eventual Israel monitor and a believable political horizon for Palestinians,” he stated.
