US President Biden and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman
US President Biden and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin SalmanReuters, Handout

The United States is close to closing a mutual defense pact under which it would be obligated to ensure the security of Saudi Arabia, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday, citing US and Saudi officials.

However, the deal would rely, on Israel agreeing to a path to Palestinian statehood in the long run and ending the war in Gaza in the immediate future.

According to the US Constitution, treaties like the Strategic Alliance Agreement, as the deal is officially known, must receive a two-thirds majority vote in the Senate. According to the report, it is unlikely to gain support from enough lawmakers without being linked to a Saudi commitment to normalize ties with Israel.

The Saudis are conditioning normalization with the Jewish state to Israeli support of a credible pathway toward a two-state solution with the Palestinians.