"Both praised each other publicly and didn't show any daylight between them, but parts of their closed meeting were tense. Trump was disappointed to hear the pushback from MBS, officials say. Behind the scenes: White House officials told the crown prince ahead of the meeting that Trump expected progress on normalizing Saudi relations with Israel. During the Nov. 18 meeting, Trump was the one who raised the issue and pressed hard MBS to join the Abraham Accords, U.S. officials say."
"At that point the conversation got tense, the officials say. As Trump pressed, MBS pushed back. MBS explained to Trump that although he wants to do move forward with normalization with Israel, he can't do so now because Saudi public opinion is highly anti-Israel in the aftermath of the Gaza war. He said Saudi society isn't ready for such a move now, the three sources told Axios."
""The best way to say it is disappointment and irritation. The president really wants them to join the Abraham Accord. He tried very hard to talk him. It was an honest discussion. But MBS is a strong man. He stood his ground," the source said. MBS demanded that in return for a peace deal with Saudi Arabia, Israel should agree to "an irreversible, credible and time-bound path" for a Palestinian state. MBS also made that clear publicly, after the meeting. Israel's government opposes any path for a Palestinian state."
Trump met Mohammed bin Salman on Nov. 18; they publicly praised each other, though parts of their closed meeting were tense. White House officials told the crown prince beforehand that Trump expected progress on normalizing Saudi relations with Israel. Trump raised the Abraham Accords and pressed MBS to join. MBS pushed back, saying Saudi public opinion after the Gaza war is highly anti‑Israel and society is not ready for normalization now. MBS demanded that Israel agree to an irreversible, credible and time‑bound path to a Palestinian state as a condition for Saudi normalization. Israel's government opposes any path toward a Palestinian state.
Read at Axios
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