Senior officials in the US administration report that President Donald Trump is demanding that Arab countries without ties to Israel - led by Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Pakistan - immediately join the Abraham Accords and sign formal peace agreements.
Channel 12 News reported that Trump held a conference call with the leaders of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Pakistan, Turkey, Egypt, Jordan, and Bahrain. The original purpose of the call was to secure the support of Sunni states for a deal with Tehran aimed at ending the war.
The various leaders, including UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed - who had previously taken a far more hawkish stance regarding confrontation with Iran - expressed sweeping support for the US president. “They all told him: we’re with you on this deal, and if it doesn’t work, we’ll still be with you," a senior administration official said.
The dramatic turn in the conversation came when Trump directly linked security arrangements with Iran to diplomatic recognition of the State of Israel. According to those present, Trump made clear that once the campaign ends, he expects every country at the table that has not yet done so to open embassies and normalize relations with Israel, while focusing primarily on a historic peace agreement between Saudi Arabia and Israel.
The direct and unexpected demand reportedly stunned some of those on the call, particularly Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Pakistan’s prime minister. “The moment those words were spoken, there was complete and awkward silence on the line. Trump immediately noticed the discomfort, joked aloud, and asked with a smile if they were still with him on the call," a senior official said.
To underscore his seriousness, the president added that he intended to contact Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu immediately and expressed hope that in the near future Netanyahu would join them on the same conference call. He also announced that his special envoys, Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff, would begin a dedicated round of talks on the issue in the coming weeks.