Kushner hopeful another Arab state will forge ties with Israel within ‘months’

Senior White House Adviser Jared Kushner predicts another Arab country could establish diplomatic ties with Israel within months.

“Let’s hope it’s months,” he tells UAE’s WAM news agency, when asked whether such a step was foreseeable in months, or years.

He doesn’t name the country.

“Obviously anything could happen, but the reality is that a lot of people are envious of the move that the United Arab Emirates has made,” says Kushner.

“We don’t solve problems by not talking to each other. So, normalizing relations and allowing people-to-people and business exchanges will only make the Middle East stronger and a more stable place,” adds the senior US official, during his trip to Abu Dhabi with an Israeli delegation.

Asked whether he believes all 22 Arab states will eventually recognize Israel, US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law replies: “100%.”

“I believe that it is logical for them to do it and I believe it is the right thing to do over time,” he says.

“I think thanks to the UAE leadership there will be a much bigger coalition. [There will be] what I call ‘a vocal majority’ that will be in favor of normalizing. I think the vocal minority who have been against it will be more and more isolated in the region,” he says.

Kushner also says the issue of Israeli annexation will be raised again “in the future” but “not in the near future,” without elaborating on a timeframe.

Israel suspended its West Bank annexation plans in exchange for normalization with the UAE.