Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan said on Wednesday that he believes talks on normalization between Israel and Saudi Arabia will resume immediately after the conclusion of the war in Gaza.
"At the moment we are waiting for a ceasefire, after that the peace process must be restarted. It must be possible. If we are not ready to overcome the obstacles and history, there will never be a chance for peace. The Arabs have shown that they are serious and ready, we hope it will happen soon," Prince Faisal said.
Bahrain’s Foreign Minister, Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani, added that "the war in Gaza between Hamas and Israel must not be allowed to delay the economic connection in the region that began following the Abraham Accords."
Shortly after the start of the war in Gaza, sources told Reuters that Saudi Arabia is putting the US-backed plans to normalize ties with Israel on ice.
Before the start of the fighting, both Israeli and Saudi leaders had been saying they were moving steadily towards a deal.
US National Security Council Spokesman John Kirby told reporters at the end of September that a “basic framework” was in place for a potential deal between Israel and Saudi Arabia, but also said, “We’re continuing to work at this…until you negotiate everything, you haven’t really negotiated anything final.”
Days later, deputy State Department spokesperson Vedant Patel poured cold water on the idea that a normalization agreement between Israel and Saudi Arabia is near, saying there is still work to be done.