Saudi FM: Establishment of Palestinian state is only path to ‘sustainable peace’

Saudi Arabia reiterates its stance that normalization with Israel “can only come through the establishment of a Palestinian state.”

Speaking at a press conference on the sidelines of a UN conference promoting a two-state solution that Riyadh is co-sponsoring with Paris, Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan says this was the same position that was expressed over a year ago by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

“It is based on a strong conviction that only through the establishment of a Palestinian state, and only through addressing the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people to self-determination, can we have sustainable peace and real integration in the region,” Prince Faisal says.

Israeli officials have long insisted that Riyadh would be willing to settle for less, perhaps even mere lip-service to a two-state solution in exchange for normalizing ties with Israel.

Saudi officials have pushed back on such assumptions, while demanding that Israel establish an irreversible, time-bound pathway to the establishment of a Palestinian state.

Israel under the current government led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has long rejected such a framework and has taken steps toward formally annexing West Bank lands that Palestinians hope would be part of their future state.