Regional power Saudi Arabia has firmly reiterated that establishing ties with Israel remains conditional on the creation of an independent Palestinian state, a position that directly challenges Israel’s recent diplomatic overture to Syria and Lebanon. This consistent stance from Riyadh underscores the persistent centrality of the Palestinian issue in broader Arab-Israeli normalization efforts.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar announced on Monday his nation’s interest in establishing formal diplomatic relations with Syria and Lebanon, arguing that Iran’s perceived weakening after the recent 12-day war presents an opportunity. He also emphasized that the Golan Heights is non-negotiable for Israel, a territory it annexed in 1981 after capturing it from Syria in 1967.
The Israeli push for broader regional ties aligns with the 2020 Abraham Accords, which saw the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Morocco normalize relations with Israel. These agreements, however, were deeply unpopular in the Arab world, highlighting the public sentiment against normalization without a resolution to the Palestinian conflict.
Indeed, a senior Syrian official, speaking anonymously, echoed Saudi Arabia’s sentiment, stating that any normalization efforts with Israel must be part of the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative, which calls for Israeli withdrawal from occupied territories and the establishment of an independent Palestinian state. Israel’s Saar, however, dismissed conditioning normalization on Palestinian statehood as “not constructive,” asserting that it would “threaten the security of the State of Israel,” illustrating the deep ideological chasm.