Kushner: Gulf States’ Normalisation With Israel ‘a Matter of Time’

(MEMO) Jared Kushner, a senior adviser to the US President Donald Trump and his son-in- law, said the Gulf countries including Saudi Arabia are looking forward to normalising their relations with Israel, however the question is “the time frame”.

“A lot of the countries are watching this very closely. They are going to see how it is responded to. The younger generation [in the region] is very excited about it. Some members of the older generation still have nostalgia for a different time, and don’t want to take any risks,” Kushner said in an exclusive interview with the Newsweek.

“But the reality is, most of these countries want to advance their economies, and they realize that by holding themselves back they are playing into Iran’s hands and Iran’s desire for a fractured and chaotic Middle East,” he added.

Kushner claimed that the leaders of the Gulf states have grown “pessimistic about the Palestinian leadership’s intention to improve the lives of the Palestinian people”, adding that they will not hold back their regional ambitions and have regional problems because the Palestinian leadership can’t figure out how to move forward.

READ: New US move to push Saudi Arabia to normalise relations with Israel

On 13 August, US President Donald Trump announced a peace deal between the UAE and Israel brokered by Washington.

Abu Dhabi said the deal was an effort to stave off Tel Aviv’s planned annexation of the occupied West Bank, however, opponents believe normalisation efforts have been in the offing for many years as Israeli officials have made official visits to the UAE and attended conferences in the country which had no diplomatic or other ties with the occupation state.

However, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu repeated on 17 August that annexation is not off the table, but has simply been delayed.


This article originally appeared on Middle East Monitor.

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