During his maiden trip to the West Bank on Tuesday, the newly designated Saudi Arabian representative to the Palestinian Authority handed Mahmoud Abbas his credentials.
The visit was part of American efforts to restore relations between Saudi Arabia and Israel. The non-resident ambassador Nayef al-Sudairi’s trip is largely regarded as the kingdom’s attempt to address the major sticking point in the Saudi-Israeli normalization agreement, namely Saudi Arabia’s long-standing support for the Palestinians.
Al-Sudairi also serves as the Saudi ambassador to Jordan. According to the Saudi administration, relations with Israel will only be normalized if significant progress is made toward the establishment of a Palestinian state.
The Saudi envoy met with Abbas and other top Palestinian officials to begin his two-day visit, which is led by the Palestinian Authority, which has some limited authority in the West Bank.
Al-Sudairi told reporters after his meeting with Abbas, “God willing, this visit will be just the beginning of things to come, with the coordination of senior Palestinian officials who are architects of our relations.”
But there are still a number of barriers to such a deal. Fears of an arms race with Iran have increased as a result of Saudi Arabia’s desire for a defense agreement with the United States and assistance in developing their own civilian nuclear program.
Saudi Arabia also wants Israel to provide some sort of accommodation to the Palestinians living in the West Bank, which Israel seized in the 1967 Middle East conflict along with east Jerusalem and Gaza.
Al-Sudairi repeated the kingdom’s support for the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with east Jerusalem as its capital on Tuesday in Ramallah, the location of the Palestinian Authority.
But there are still a number of barriers to such a deal. Fears of an arms race with Iran have increased as a result of Saudi Arabia’s desire for a defense agreement with the United States and assistance in developing their own civilian nuclear program.
Saudi Arabia also wants Israel to provide some sort of accommodation to the Palestinians living in the West Bank, which Israel seized in the 1967 Middle East conflict along with east Jerusalem and Gaza.
Al-Sudairi repeated the kingdom’s support for the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with east Jerusalem as its capital on Tuesday in Ramallah, the location of the Palestinian Authority.
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