Trump Official Says Other Countries Expected to Normalize Ties with Israel Before Saudi Arabia: Report

Washington (Quds News Network)- A senior Trump administration official has reportedly said that other countries are expected to sign normalization agreements with Israel before Riyadh.

US President Donald Trump is set to visit Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates, with the trip beginning on May 13, looking to fast-track investments.

“We fully expect other countries to sign (agreements) first before Saudi,” one senior Trump administration official involved in the talks told CNN, adding that Trump officials are engaged in conversations with a “wide range of countries.”

Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law who served as a chief Middle East negotiator in Trump’s first term, has been closely advising the broader Trump team on how to approach sensitive talks with Saudi leaders on the trip, multiple Trump administration officials and people close to Kushner told CNN.

Though Kushner is unlikely to join Trump on the trip, he has been heavily involved in discussions with Arab nations, including Saudi Arabia, about signing agreements that would normalize diplomatic relations with Israel, the sources said.

People involved in the discussions said the Trump administration is under no illusion that they will leave the Middle East having struck a deal with Riyadh. But they view the face-to-face meetings between Trump and Saudi leaders as a prime opportunity to make progress.

However, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has stated unequivocally that Riyadh won’t normalize relations with Israel until there is a clear path for Palestinian statehood and a permanent end to the assault in Gaza.

People close to Kushner told CNN that he believes there are proposals the administration can offer to the crown prince that would soften his stance on joining the so-called Abraham Accords, a set of deals brokered by Trump in his first term under which Arab states including the UAE, Bahrain, Sudan and Morocco normalized ties with Israel, only if Palestinians have a clear pathway to statehood.

The sources added that Kushner developed a close personal relationship with Prince bin Salman during the first Trump administration — the two often communicated via WhatsApp — and they still speak frequently.

The president’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff told an audience at the Israeli embassy in Washington last week that he expected an expansion of the Abraham Accords soon.

“We think will have some or a lot of announcements very, very shortly,” said Witkoff, who is expected to accompany Trump on his visit to the Middle East.

Behind the scenes, Reuters reported on Sunday, citing two Gulf sources close to official circles and a US official, that Trump officials are quietly pressing Israel to agree to an immediate ceasefire in Gaza for any re-start of normalization talks.

However, opposition by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to a permanent stop to the assault in Gaza or to the creation of a Palestinian state make progress on similar talks with Riyadh unlikely, two of the sources said.