When President Donald Trump lands in Riyadh on Tuesday, he will be greeted with a gorgeous ritual, a golden palace and a prospect of $1 trillion investment. However, the raging war in Gaza has denied one goal he has long longed for: normalization of Saudi Israel.
Behind the scenes, US officials are quietly pressing Israel to agree to an immediate ceasefire in Gaza – one of the prerequisites for the resumption of talks on normalization in Saudi Arabia is reported by Reuters, according to two Persian Gulf sources and US civil servants, close to the official circle.
Trump’s Middle Eastern envoy Steve Witkov told audiences at the Israeli Embassy in Washington this week that he expects a series of transactions intermediated in the first period by certain Arab countries, including Arab countries, Bahrain, Sudan and Morocco, to acknowledge Israel.
“We think there will be some or many announcements very soon, so we hope to see progress by next year,” Witkoff said in a video of his speech. He is expected to accompany Trump on his visit to the Middle East.
But opposition by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the war and the permanent halt of the creation of the Palestinian state has not progressed in similar consultations with Riyadh, two sources said.