Trump will push for Israel normalization before Saudi crown prince visit

Saudi Arabia’s insistence that Israel commit to steps toward a Palestinian state on a defined timetable; Netanyahu has not agreed to those terms.

By Vered Weiss, World Israel News

US President Donald Trump is expected to promote a normalization framework between Israel and Saudi Arabia before he hosts Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at the White House next week, senior American officials told N12.

While preparations for the visit are underway, the officials cautioned that it is not yet clear whether both sides can reach a breakthrough in time.

Before bin Salman’s first visit since he approved the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018, US and Saudi teams have been negotiating a broad set of agreements that Washington hopes to finalize during his visit, including security understandings tied to the future regional order.

A central issue for both governments is whether conditions are ripe to relaunch talks on Israel-Saudi normalization following the end of the Gaza war.

According to the report, Trump’s advisers have encouraged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to prioritize the Saudi channel as part of the wider post-war diplomatic plan.

American officials view normalization as a key strategic objective but acknowledge that major gaps persist—especially Saudi Arabia’s insistence that Israel commit to steps toward a Palestinian state on a defined timetable. Netanyahu has not agreed to those terms.

Among other items under discussion is a potential US security assurance to Saudi Arabia, modeled on the commitments made to Qatar last year, as well as Saudi interest in a major arms package reportedly including F-35 aircraft.

Sources told N12 that Riyadh remains frustrated that many agreements announced during Trump’s May visit to Saudi Arabia have yet to materialize.