Trump and Netanyahu to Announce Progress in Saudi-Israel Normalization Talks

Watan-According to a report by the newspaper “Haaretz” on Sunday, U.S. President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are expected to announce progress in discussions aimed at normalizing relations between Saudi Arabia and Israel during their meeting in Washington tomorrow.

The report indicates that U.S. Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff has been coordinating the precise terms between the parties. However, it remains unclear whether the announcement will be symbolic or outline an actual plan.

This development follows Witkoff’s visit to Riyadh last week, which was followed by a similar visit to Tel Aviv. After this “marathon,” he met with the Palestinian Authority’s Minister of Civil Affairs, Hussein al-Sheikh, as well as a “Palestinian figure acceptable to the West,” according to the newspaper.

The main focus of the Trump administration is to quickly advance the normalization of relations with Saudi Arabia, which the United States considers a “key” to regional change, based on “excluding Hamas, ending Iran’s nuclear project, and injecting funds into the American market.”

The report notes that Trump’s repeated statements about relocating part of Gaza’s population and resettling them in Egypt and Jordan may be “merely a negotiating tactic,” allowing Saudi Arabia to announce the failure of this plan as part of understandings with Washington regarding normalization.

In reality, most details of the future agreement are “pre-agreed” between the parties since negotiations conducted during the previous U.S. administration under Joe Biden. According to the understandings, “Israel and Saudi Arabia will sign a normalization agreement that includes partnerships and economic cooperation.”

The United States will commit to “providing Saudi Arabia with nuclear reactors for civilian purposes, with strict regulatory guarantees,” as well as a mutual defense agreement between the two sides and a commitment to a “path toward a Palestinian state.” The newspaper explained that the clause related to ensuring a path that ultimately leads to the establishment of a Palestinian state has been agreed upon with Israel but will be issued in the form of an American declaration binding Israel without being part of the direct agreement between Tel Aviv and Riyadh.

The main obstacle to progress in this path, as identified by the newspaper, is the war in Gaza, where Saudi Arabia conditions the cessation of military operations to move forward with the agreement. Trump is expected to emphasize this again during his meeting with Netanyahu at the White House.

Regarding the Netanyahu-Trump meeting tomorrow, Tuesday, the newspaper noted that Israel will receive a clear statement from the U.S. president that Hamas “will not be part of any future administration of the Gaza Strip.” According to the newspaper, officials and diplomats in the Middle East have begun formulating a specific settlement to remove Hamas from the scene and distance it from power “without officially declaring its surrender.”

Additionally, the newspaper noted that Netanyahu believes that a public commitment from the U.S. president “will help him overcome internal political pressures,” especially from the hardline wing represented by the Religious Zionism bloc, whose components have threatened to withdraw from the government and dissolve the Knesset if Israel does not resume operations after the end of the first phase of the prisoner exchange deal.