US President Donald Trump wants to see progress toward normalization between Israel and Saudi Arabia ahead of his planned meeting with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at the White House next week, senior American officials told N12.
The officials said it is still unclear whether a breakthrough will be possible before the meeting.
The visit will be bin Salman’s first to the United States since the 2018 killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, which US intelligence agencies assessed was approved by the crown prince.
American and Saudi officials have held discussions in recent days to finalize a wide-ranging package of agreements, including a defense arrangement, ahead of the meeting.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington expects to sign several agreements with Saudi Arabia during the visit. “We have some good agreements to sign with them,” he said, adding that some details still need to be finalized.
According to the report, one of the main issues under discussion between Washington and Riyadh is how to renew talks on possible normalization between Israel and Saudi Arabia, now that the war in Gaza has ended.
Trump’s advisers have urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to focus on the broader goal of a potential peace deal with Saudi Arabia and to move forward with the next steps of the plan to end the Gaza conflict.
Two senior US officials told N12 that the White House informed the Saudis it would like to see progress on this matter in connection with the Trump bin Salman meeting.
Israel-Saudi normalization remains key objective of Trump administration
While US officials acknowledge that gaps remain and that more time will be needed to bridge them, normalization is viewed as a key objective. The main issue, according to the report, is Saudi Arabia’s demand that Israel take concrete steps toward establishing a Palestinian state with a clear timeline, a demand Netanyahu has not accepted.
Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman, the crown prince’s younger brother, visited Washington earlier this week to prepare for the meeting.
He met with Rubio, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, and US Middle East Envoy Steve Witkoff. “We discussed ways to strengthen our strategic cooperation and addressed regional and international developments,” Prince Khalid wrote on X.
Saudi ministers of economy and energy also visited Washington recently as part of the preparations. Trump’s adviser and son-in-law, Jared Kushner, met with Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh last weekend to discuss advancing the Gaza agreement and related issues, according to sources cited in the report.
Among the agreements being discussed is a possible US security commitment to Saudi Arabia. It would not be a legally binding defense treaty but a presidential assurance similar to the one granted to Qatar last year. Saudi National Security Adviser Musaad al-Aiban recently visited Washington to discuss the potential deal.
Sources told N12 that Saudi Arabia is also trying to move forward with a large arms purchase, including dozens of F-35 fighter jets. The Saudi Embassy in Washington did not respond to N12's requests for comment.
The report noted that many of the agreements announced during Trump’s May visit to Riyadh have not been implemented. A source familiar with the matter said Saudi officials were disappointed that most of the agreements “remained on paper” without further progress.