Officials from the Palestinian Authority and Saudi counterparts held talks in Riyadh on Wednesday. The group was also due to see US officials. US officials are thought to have been pushing for a landmark pact to normalize Israel-Saudi ties. The deal would include a security deal between the Saudis and the US, but the agreements remain distant as they face significant obstacles.
In return for recognizing Israel, Saudi Arabia is said to be asking for US guarantees for advanced American-made weapons and a civil nuclear program, along with in-country uranium enrichment. Israel would benefit from trade and defense connections with Saudi Arabia and further historic integration in the region. For a deal to succeed, It would have to involve significant Israeli concessions to the Palestinians. The team of top Palestinians officials in Riyadh listed their demands in return for engaging with the American-backed process. The demands include transferring parts of the West Bank currently under full Israeli control to the governance of the Palestinian Authority and a “complete concession” of Israeli settlement growth in the West Bank. They also include resuming Audi financial support to the PA, re-opening the US consulate in occupied East Jerusalem, and resuming US-brokered negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians.
Read More: Palestinians set out terms for agreeing to historic Saudi-Israeli deal
