Yossi Schwartz ISL (RCIT section in Israel/Occupied Palestine), 11.05.2025
According to another article by Israel Today:
The United States has lifted the demand that Saudi Arabia normalize its relations with Israel as a condition for progress in talks on civilian nuclear cooperation, Reuters reported on Thursday evening. This is according to two sources familiar with the details, a few days before President Donald Trump’s expected visit to the kingdom.
Waiving the demand for diplomatic relations between Saudi Arabia and Israel would be a significant setback on Washington’s part. Under the former Biden administration, the nuclear talks were part of a broader framework that linked normalization to the Saudis’ aspiration for a defense agreement with the United States.
Saudi Arabia has repeatedly stated that it will not recognize Israel without the establishment of a Palestinian state, which will frustrate the Biden administration’s efforts to expand the Abraham Accords signed during Trump’s first term. As part of these agreements, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Morocco established official relations with Israel.
Progress toward Saudi recognition of Israel has stalled in the wake of outrage in the Arab world over the war in Gaza. The nuclear talks also encountered difficulties due to American concerns about the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons.
In a possible sign of a new approach, U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright said in April, during a visit to the kingdom, that Saudi Arabia and the United States were on a “track” toward a civilian nuclear agreement
“When we have something to announce, hear it from the president. All reports on this issue are speculative,” James Hewitt, a spokesman for the US National Security Council, said in response to the report[i]
Endnotes: [i] https://www.israelhayom.co.il/news/world-news/usa/article/17919376