Israel is sending a message to Saudi Arabia with its strong support for Riyadh's campaign to host the 'Expo Conference', a huge international conference that Saudi Arabia wants to host in 2030. Mohammed Bin Salman (MBS), the heir apparent to the Saudi throne, is running a huge campaign to get Saudi Arabia chosen to host the Expo convention, as part of the foreign policy that the kingdom is leading, and Israeli officials are reportedly working behind the scenes to help the Saudi Prince in his efforts to land the Expo.
According to the report, Bin Salman will hold a launch party for the Saudi proposal to host the Expo, an event that will be held in Paris. After receiving an invitation from Saudi Arabia to participate in the event, an official Israeli representative will be in attendance. By accepting the offer to attend, Israel is sending a message that it is interested in its proximity to Saudi Arabia, while the Biden administration is exerting pressure for normalization steps between Israel and Saudi Arabia.
Israel has conveyed a message to #SaudiArabia that it will support Riyadh's campaign to host the #Expo2030 Conference. An Israeli representative will be present at a launch party tomorrow in Paris for the Saudi bid at the invitation of the Saudi authorities. pic.twitter.com/SaCcTMIVqN
— Israel National News - Arutz Sheva (@ArutzSheva_En) June 18, 2023
A final decision on Israel's support for Saudi Arabia's bid to host the expo has not yet been officially made, but this is the obvious direction and so is the Israeli presence at the celebratory Saudi event a symbol of the future. The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not respond to the reports or a request to comment.
Roi Kais, a commentator on Arab affairs at the Israeli network “Kan”, noted that the Saudi Crown Prince, Bin Salman, has not yet finished his visit to France, where he met with Macron over the weekend. He is supposed to present in Paris Saudi Arabia's candidacy to host the Expo 2030 fair, the winner of the bid to host the fair is expected to be announced this November. "If indeed Riyadh is chosen, I'm willing to bet that we will arrive there with a blue and white passport."
Gili Cohen @gilicohen10 reports: As a sign of normalization: Israel offers to support Saudi Arabia’s campaign to host the Expo conference that the Saudis want to host in 2030. MBS is running a campaign to get KSA chosen for the conference, as part of the kingdom’s foreign policy. https://t.co/z2i0fgFvjQ
— Heedo Abu Laban | عبد الحميد | 𓂆 (@HeedoAbuLaban) June 18, 2023
Six Arab countries have diplomatic relations with Israel, starting with Egypt in 1979, Jordan in 1994, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco, and Sudan in 2020; if indeed the normalization process with Saudi Arabia succeeds it would become the seventh and most important in the eyes of many.
The initial demands of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in exchange for the agreement, according to the report, were guarantees from Washington to protect Saudi Arabia from military attack, a Saudi-American partnership to enrich uranium for a civilian nuclear program, and the removal of restrictions on the sale of American weapons to the kingdom. It was reported yesterday that Israel gave their approval for the Saudi nuclear program, even providing feedback on which locations are best suited for the project.
If this is correct, this is a game changer.
— Jay Engelmayer (@jengelmayer) June 18, 2023
Israel told the Americans they are OK with a Saudi Arabian nuclear program, with some caveats - leading to normalization.
Hopefully, peace will come soon.@hahussain - if this actually happens is there hope for Lebanon to shift too? https://t.co/bKwXm9v8Q1
The Saudis, for their part, will also have to make major concessions and abandon their dated position, according to which peace with Israel "can only come after the establishment of a Palestinian state." Meanwhile, publicly, Saudi officials continue to say repeatedly that an agreement with Israel should include the establishment of a state for the Palestinians, a position the kingdom has held since promoting the Arab peace initiative in 2002. However, with the rumors of the Israeli backing for their nuclear program, it is also speculated that the Palestinian issue is no longer a major factor for normalization.
