MbS To Blinken: ‘No’ To Israeli Normalization, ‘Yes’ To Syrian Reconciliation
Authored by Hasan Illaik via The Cradle
Biden revealed was based primarily on his feedback from a June 7th after-midnight meeting held in Jeddah between Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MbS) and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
During their tete-a-tete, the two men spent an hour and forty minutes discussing various issues of mutual interest. But the first goal of the meeting was to improve US-Saudi relations, which have not yet reverted to pre-2018 levels when the US accused MbS of masterminding the assassination of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
New US ‘rules’ on engaging with Saudis. US Ambassador to Riyadh Michael Ratney is the policy architect leading the charge to improve bilateral relations. Sources familiar with the contents of Saudi diplomatic reports tell sources that Ratney has previously sent the US State Department a set of “rules” which he believes will help improve relations between his country and Saudi Arabia.
The first of these rules is to stop targeting MbS personally. There is a longstanding Saudi tradition of zero tolerance for disparagement of the country’s ruler, whoever he may be, by any external state. Ratney noted that while MbS can live with US criticism of Saudi politics, he will not tolerate criticism of him personally because he sees it as an attempt to undermine his rule and destroy his image. The US ambassador made clear that continued attacks on bin Salman will hinder the improvement of relations between Washington and Riyadh.
Ratney’s second rule is to change the way US officials communicate with the crown prince. American envoys have typically been very reserved when holding talks with the Saudi rulers (king or crown prince), not delving into the details of vital issues, which they reserve for discussions with ministers and advisers. Ratney advised that discussions with MbS should be detailed and that US proposals should be clear.
Blinken came to Saudi Arabia having adopted his ambassador’s recommendations. In his meeting with MbS, he outlined the issues clearly. Sources reviewed part of the content of their discussions pertaining to two US policies: the project to normalize Israeli-Saudi relations, and Washington’s desire to thwart improved ties between Riyadh and Damascus.
The American demands were direct: We want a normalization agreement between you and Israel; your rapprochement with the Syrian regime is useless at this stage.‘No’ to normalization with Tel Aviv
.According to the source’s Arab and Western diplomatic sources, Blinken asked his host: “Why don’t you do with Israel what you did with Iran?”MbS’ response was equally direct. On the issue of a ‘peace agreement’ with Israel, he replied with three points, which Blinken later reported were unclear in terms of their order of importance:
First, the Saudi crown prince clarified that King Salman bin Abdulaziz still opposes an agreement with Tel Aviv. Second, MbS reported that fruitful communication continues between Saudi and Israeli authorities – such as allowing the passage of civilian aircraft into Saudi airspace and lifting the ban on Israeli players in international sporting events – with the following caveat:
“But these contacts will not soon lead to a peace agreement and normalization. We remain committed to the Arab Peace Initiative (the 2001 Beirut Summit Initiative), which is to grant the Palestinians an independent State in exchange for comprehensive peace. Israel has treated the Abraham Accords as an incentive to ignore the Palestinians and undermine the foundations of the peace process with the Palestinians, rather than seeing them as an opportunity to enhance the chances of reaching a lasting peace. The Israeli government is approving more settlement projects, compounding the obstacles to any future solution.”
Therefore, from MbS’ perspective, Saudi Arabia has yet to see a reason to abandon its own Arab peace initiative. Third, the sources say, the Saudi crown prince asked his American guest:
“Why should we give you an agreement with Israel? For what? You refuse our having a peaceful nuclear project. Since your administration came to power, you have revoked the Houthi designation as a terrorist organization. You are demanding a reduction in the price of oil to the detriment of our interests. So why do you expect us to give you a peace agreement with Israel? We are ready to go even beyond normalization with Israel, and achieve regional integration for Tel Aviv, but only if it serves the interests of our country.”
