US official: Only ‘handful of issues’ unresolved in US-Saudi component of Israel normalization plan

A senior State Department official traveling with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken says talks in Saudi Arabia focused on the bilateral portion of a larger plan in which Saudi Arabia would recognize Israel in return for credible progress on the creation of a Palestinian state.

Israel’s hardline government is staunchly opposed to Palestinian statehood, which Saudis have said is an essential component to any normalization agreement.

The official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss private diplomatic talks, says only a “handful of issues” remain to be resolved in the US-Saudi component of the plan. That part of the plan is widely believed to include US defense guarantees and aid in building a civilian nuclear program in Saudi Arabia.

In January, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly rejected a proposal from Blinken that would have seen Saudi Arabia normalize relations with Israel in exchange for Jerusalem agreeing to provide the Palestinians with a pathway toward statehood.