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Biden's aide says no terms ready for normalisation between Israel, Saudi Arabia

September 8, 2023 at 3:47 pm

National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan speaks during the White House press briefing [Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images]

There are no terms ready for a possible normalisation deal between Israel and Saudi Arabia, the UN National Security Adviser said on Friday, Anadolu Agency reports.

“Many of the elements of a pathway to normalisation are now on the table,” Jake Sullivan told journalists in a press briefing.

He said that no terms are ready to be signed between Israel and Saudi Arabia, stressing that “there is still work to do”.

The top aide said, however, that there is a “broad understanding of many of the key elements” between them.

In recent weeks, several US officials have visited both Israel and Saudi Arabia in an attempt to pave the way for a possible normalisation deal. The officials also met with Palestinian officials to understand their position on such a step.

Saudi Arabia does not have diplomatic relations with Israel and opposes normalisation with Tel Aviv until it ends the decades-long Israeli Occupation of the Palestinian Territories.

Six Arab countries have diplomatic ties with Israel, starting with Egypt in 1979, Jordan in 1994, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Bahrain in September 2020, and then Sudan and Morocco later that year.

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