Rubio discusses Trump’s Gaza plan with MBS before Saudi summit on ‘Arab alternatives’
In Riyadh, top US diplomat stresses importance of arrangement ‘that contributes to regional security’; Republican senator: ‘Very little appetite’ for US to take over Strip
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman discussed plans for Gaza during a meeting on Monday, the State Department said, a day after Washington’s top diplomat visited Israel.
Rubio is touring the Middle East after President Donald Trump infuriated the Arab world with a proposal for Gazans to be resettled in other Arab countries and for the US to lead the reconstruction of the Palestinian enclave.
“The secretary underscored the importance of an arrangement for Gaza that contributes to regional security,” US State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said in a readout of the meeting between Rubio and the crown prince.
A Saudi source told AFP earlier that Riyadh was set to host a regional summit later this week “to discuss Arab alternatives” to Trump’s widely criticized plan.
Egypt, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Qatar and Kuwait will be represented at the Friday summit, the source said.
In a statement on Monday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he was “committed to US President Trump’s plan for the creation of a different Gaza,” also promising that after the war, “there will be neither Hamas nor the Palestinian Authority” ruling the coastal enclave.
Washington says it is open to alternative proposals from Arab governments, but Rubio has said that for now “the only plan is the Trump plan.”
The two also reaffirmed their commitment “to implementing the ceasefire in Gaza and ensuring that Hamas releases all hostages, including American citizens,” and discussed Syria, Lebanon, and the Red Sea, the US State Department added.
The US has also been pushing for a historic deal in which Saudi Arabia would recognize Israel. In return, Riyadh demands the establishment of a Palestinian state — long opposed by Israeli leaders and potentially in contradiction to Trump’s Gaza plan.
Senator Graham in Jerusalem: Partner with the Saudis
Meanwhile, Republican Senator Lindsey Graham told reporters in Israel on Monday that Jerusalem has “no better partner in destroying radical Islam than Saudi Arabia.”
Graham was speaking to reporters following meetings by a visiting bipartisan US Senate delegation with Israeli officials.
He also said that there was no “appetite in Israel for an end of the war with Hamas still standing,” calling into question whether an ongoing hostage-ceasefire deal in Gaza would move into its second phase.
“Pray for the hostages,” he said,” but we cannot leave Hamas in charge.”
On Trump’s plan for the Strip, Graham said there was “very little appetite in the US Senate for the US to take over Gaza in any way, shape, or form.”
Rubio arrived in Saudi Arabia earlier in the day from Israel, where he began his first visit to the region as the top US diplomat.
The visit came ahead of an anticipated meeting between US officials and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov that is set to focus on ending the war in Ukraine and restoring broader Russia-US ties.
Lavrov and senior Putin aide Yuri Ushakov, who arrived in Riyadh late on Monday according to images shown by the Rossiya 24 news channel, were set to meet with Rubio, National Security Adviser Mike Waltz, and Special Envoy Steve Witkoff.
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Neither the US nor the Saudi statement mentioned discussions about Ukraine.
Both sides have played down the chances that the first high-level meeting between the countries since Moscow invaded Ukraine in 2022 would result in a breakthrough.
Nevertheless, the very fact of the talks has triggered concern in Kyiv and Europe — left reeling by Washington’s dramatic diplomatic moves toward the Kremlin.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday accused the US of wanting “to please” Russian President Vladimir Putin by “now saying things that are very favorable” to him.
He previously revealed that Kyiv had not been invited to the discussions in Riyadh.
Trump is pushing for a swift resolution to the three-year conflict in Ukraine, while Moscow sees his outreach as a chance to gain concessions on some of its longstanding gripes about Washington’s military presence in Europe.
Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.
