Adel Al-Jubeir
Adel Al-JubeirReuters

Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister, Adel Al-Jubeir, responded on Sunday to the economic part of the US peace plan for Israel and the Palestinian Arabs.

Speaking in an interview with France 24 and quoted by Reuters, Jubeir said that improving the Palestinians’ situation should be welcomed but added that addressing the political process in resolving the conflict with Israel is “extremely important”.

“I think anything that improves the situation of the Palestinian people is something that should be welcomed. Now having said that the political process is extremely important,” said the Saudi Foreign Minister.

“The Palestinians are the ones who have the ultimate decision in this, because it’s their issue and so whatever the Palestinians accept, I believe everybody else will accept,” he added.

Jubeir said Riyadh continued to support a political process based on an independent Palestinian state along the pre-1967 borders with eastern Jerusalem as its capital.

His comments come after the US government on Saturday unveiled the economic part of its peace plan that it will present in Bahrain on Tuesday and Wednesday.

The plan aims to raise more than $50 billion for the Palestinian Authority (PA) and create one million jobs for its residents within a decade.

The PA is boycotting the Bahrain economic conference, even though several Arab countries, including Saudi Arabia, will attend.

The PA has also rejected the US peace plan before it has even been unveiled, claiming it is biased in Israel’s favor.