NICOSIA, Cyprus — Any progress on normalizing relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia currently hinges on defense guarantees, which the latter is seeking from the United States, said a senior Israeli official traveling with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s delegation to Cyprus.
The senior official, deeply involved in the diplomatic process, estimated there are another “four to five” non-resolved issues upon which the negotiations turn, but they are “not as complicated.”
American and Palestinian delegations are traveling to the Gulf state this week to continue talks that would include a US-brokered normalization between Israel and Saudi Arabia, a prospect deeply desired by Netanyahu. READ MORE