Blinken said that normalisation between Saudi Arabia and Israel would produce “immense benefits” for the region, but that the path towards a deal will require tangible steps towards a Palestinian state.
“The crown prince [Mohammed bin Salman] reiterated Saudi Arabia’s strong interest in pursuing that, but he also made clear what he had said to me before, which is that in order to do that, two things are required: an end to the conflict in Gaza, and a clear, credible, time-bound path to the establishment of a Palestinian state,” Blinken said.
The US secretary of state added that a normalisation deal would help Israel face security threats from Iran and aligned groups in the region.
