Report: US to Offer Saudi Arabia Defense Treaty to Spur Israel Normalization
The Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday that the US has almost finalized a defense treaty with Saudi Arabia as part of a deal to encourage normalization with Israel, according to US and Saudi officials....
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Facts
- The Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday that the US has almost finalized a defense treaty with Saudi Arabia as part of a deal to encourage normalization with Israel, according to US and Saudi officials.[1]
- The defense pact, which would require a two-thirds majority in the US Senate to pass, would reportedly be a component of a larger deal including a US-Saudi civil nuclear program, actions supporting the formation of a Palestinian state, and an end to the war in Gaza.[2]
- In exchange for the pact, modeled loosely on Washington's mutual security pact with Japan, the US would be granted access to Saudi territory and airspace to protect US interests and regional allies.[2]
- Earlier reports also indicated that the biggest obstacle to the deal has been the 'credible pathway' to a Palestinian state and the Gaza war, as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly said that Israel will not allow the establishment of a Palestinian state.[3]
- Netanyahu and his allies have argued that any concessions regarding a Palestinian state or the elevation of the Palestinian Authority (PA), which partially governs the West Bank, would be a reward for Hamas' Oct. 7 attack. Hamas and the PA are separate entities and are often at odds politically.[4]
- In contrast, the US has pushed for the PA to participate in governing Gaza after the war ends on the condition that it undertakes major reforms.[4]
Sources: [1]Wsj, [2]Reuters, [3]Ft and [4]Timesofisrael.
Narratives
- Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by CNN. Though the last eight months have proved both tragic and challenging, Israel and Saudi Arabia have a unique opportunity to advance regional peace and stability. A US defense pact with Saudi Arabia predicated on normalization with Israel would be a massive strategic victory in countering Iranian influence in the region and preventing Russia or China from gaining influence.
- Establishment-critical narrative, as provided by Responsible Statecraft. A defense pact between the US and Saudi Arabia would be a terrible deal for the US and only put US interests at risk. As regional tensions are always simmering, a defense pact would mean that US forces may find themselves fighting in a war in which the US has no business being involved. US blood and treasure should not be wasted to defend a brutal monarchy.
- Pro-Israel narrative, as provided by Jerusalem Post. Hamas' Oct. 7 attack on Israel was the final nail in the coffin for the establishment of a Palestinian state. Since Israel withdrew from Gaza in 2005, the enclave has essentially existed as a terrorist-run proto-state run by Hamas. Given the Palestinian Authority's inefficacy, Israel has no partners for peace, and the last 20 years in Gaza prove this. Though normalization with Saudi Arabia would certainly improve Israel's position in the region, it cannot tolerate a violent, terrorist-run Palestinian state.
- Pro-Palestine narrative, as provided by Middle East Eye. Saudi normalization with Israel would be a betrayal of the Palestinian cause and would effectively remove any legitimacy the Saudi state has in the Arab and Muslim worlds. Arab states negotiating individual peace deals with Israel have consistently weakened the Palestinian cause and Arab unity — with Israel never actually changing its behavior toward those it occupies. Regional peace can only be achieved after the establishment of a Palestinian state.
