Blinken hopes Trump picks up work on Saudi-Israel deal

On Thursday, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken expressed hope that President-elect Donald Trump would continue efforts to normalize relations between Saudi Arabia and Israel, acknowledging that a historic deal was unlikely to happen under President Joe Biden.

Until recently, Blinken had been optimistic about reaching an agreement, using it as leverage to encourage Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu toward moderation in the Gaza conflict. In an interview with MSNBC, Blinken said, “The work we've done on the elements of that deal—what we and Saudi Arabia would do together, and what they would do with Israel—has been laid out.”

However, Blinken added that while progress would be made, a full agreement wouldn't be finalized during the Biden administration. He expressed hope that the incoming administration could take it further.

He also praised Trump’s role in the 2020 Abraham Accords, which saw the UAE, Bahrain, and Morocco normalize relations with Israel. “Now the opportunity is there, and I know the president (Trump) will focus on broadening this with Saudi Arabia,” Blinken said.

Israel’s growing acceptance in the Arab world, particularly with Saudi Arabia, is seen as a major achievement, as the kingdom is the custodian of Islam’s holiest sites. However, progress stalled after Hamas launched a deadly attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, leading to an Israeli military response in Gaza.

The Biden administration, according to Blinken, had worked on a package for Saudi Arabia, which would include U.S. security guarantees, in exchange for Saudi normalization with Israel. However, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has ruled out recognizing Israel unless a Palestinian state is established, a stance that conflicts with the hard-right policies of Netanyahu's government.