Jerusalem
The idea of a Saudi-Israel rapprochement would have been unthinkable not so long ago, and yet, shortly before the 7 October attacks, it was on the cards. The Emirates and Bahrain had recognised Israel’s sovereignty. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) was positioning Saudi Arabia to do the same. Now Joe Biden – who on Tuesday said he was ‘outraged’ at a convoy strike that killed seven people – is desperately trying to see if he can get things moving again.
Jake Sullivan, the White House national security adviser, is in Saudi Arabia this week meeting with MBS in a last-ditch attempt to save Biden’s grand design for Middle East peace. He’s unlikely to succeed, but the manner of the failure could determine how the next stages of the war between Israel and Iran and its regional proxies play out.
The President wants to show his own restive Democratic party that he’s trying to end the war
The contours of the Biden administration’s plans are well-known.
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