Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince, Mohammed bin Salman, stated in an interview with the American channel Fox News that his kingdom was moving closer to normalizing relations with Israel, while also warning that if Iran were to acquire nuclear weapons, Riyadh would be compelled to do the same.
In excerpts released ahead of the interview’s broadcast, “MbS” was asked about discussions between Saudi Arabia and Israel aimed at achieving a historic agreement to establish diplomatic relations between the two longtime rivals. He said, “We are getting closer every day.”
These talks are being facilitated by the administration of U.S. President Joe Biden, who is pushing for closer ties between Saudi Arabia and Israel, both key U.S. allies in the Middle East. The issue is complex and is part of broader negotiations that also include the security assurances and civil nuclear assistance that Riyadh seeks from Washington, as well as potential concessions by Israel to the Palestinians.
“For us, the Palestinian issue is important. We need to resolve that,” Mohammed bin Salman said in the excerpts of the interview with Fox News, regarding what would help advance a normalization agreement with Israel. “We have a good negotiation strategy,” he added.
The strong-handed leader of Saudi Arabia also expressed concern about the possibility of Iran, a common rival of his country and Israel, obtaining nuclear weapons, which the United States aims to prevent. Tehran denies such intentions. “If they have one, we should have one,” Mohammed bin Salman said when asked what would happen if Iran developed a nuclear bomb.
