Riyadh refuses to conclude an ambitious defense treaty with Washington in exchange for normalization with Israel

Saudi Arabia has given up on an ambitious defense treaty with Washington in exchange for normalizing relations with Israel and is now seeking a more modest military cooperation deal, two Saudi officials and four Western officials.

Earlier this year, Riyadh softened its stance on Palestinian statehood, signaling to Washington that a public commitment from Israel to a two-state solution could be enough for the Wahhabi kingdom to normalize its relations with the Hebrew State.

But as public anger in Saudi Arabia and across the Middle East rises over Israel’s military actions in Gaza, Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman (MBS) has once again conditioned recognition of Israel for taking concrete steps to create a Palestinian state, according to the two Saudi sources and three Western sources.

This text is a translation of an article originally published in English by Reuters.