The Biden administration is working toward a treaty with Saudi Arabia which would see US forces help defend the Gulf nation as part of a deal which would see normalized diplomatic ties between Saudi Arabia and Israel, US and Saudi officials told the Wall Street Journal in a report published on Sunday.
The treaty has been named “the Strategic Alliance Agreement” and will require a two-thirds majority vote in the Senate to pass.
What is the cost of Saudi normalization?
Despite the growing willingness to normalize ties, the treaty reportedly hinges on Israel’s commitment to establish a Palestinian state and an end to the war against Hamas.
Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, killing over 1200 people and abducting over 250 more. Israel has stated that the war will not end until Hamas is destroyed. Various ceasefire agreements have been proposed which would see a pause in fighting in exchange for the release of both dead and living hostages, however, Hamas has rejected these agreements.
The WSJ reported that this deal was a pathway toward greater acceptance among its Islamic Middle Eastern neighbors, but that it would come at the cost of a two-state solution. READ MORE
