Saudi Foreign Minister Hints Kingdom Won't Join Abraham Accords

Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister indicated the kingdom has no current intention to join the Abraham Accords despite urging from Israel and other nations, reaffirming the kingdom’s position that Palestinian statehood is the best way to achieve peace in the Middle East.

The accords, signed by several Middle Eastern nations and Israel during the Trump administration, can be “viewed positively,” and the world needs to build on the the spirit of the agreements, Prince Faisal bin Farhan said Tuesday at the Aspen Security Forum.

“The best way to build on that spirit is to find a path to solving the issue of the Palestinians and finding a path to a Palestinian state,” Prince Faisal said. “Without solving the Palestinian-Israel conflict in a sustainable long-term way, we’re not going to have real sustainable security in the region.”

The comments are likely to douse hopes by Israel’s new government to build on the Abraham Accords, including by adding Saudi Arabia to the group of nations -- the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco and Sudan -- that signed them. In June, Israel Foreign Minister Yair Lapid said the government wants to expand the accords throughout the region.

During the conversation, Prince Faisal said Iran “continues to be emboldened” to engage in what he called “negative activity” such as supplying the Houthis in Yemen and endangering shipping in the Arabian Gulf. Faisal said the kingdom wasn’t opposed to the Biden administration’s desire for a “longer and stronger” version of the 2015 nuclear accord between Iran and world powers and would support a deal as long as it ensures Iran never gets access to nuclear-weapons technology.