Riyadh introduced Nayef al-Sudairi because the non-resident ambassador for the Palestinian Territories on Saturday.
Al-Sudairi is the present ambassador to Jordan, in keeping with a social media publish from the embassy in Amman confirmed by a Saudi overseas ministry official.
The appointment represents “an important step” underscoring the will of King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman “to strengthen relations with the brothers of the State of Palestine and give it a formal boost in all areas,” Sudairi mentioned in a video broadcast by the Saudi state-affiliated Al-Ekhbariya channel.
The file for the Palestinian Territories has historically been dealt with by Saudi Arabia’s embassy in Amman.
Saudi Arabia doesn’t acknowledge Israel and didn’t be part of the 2020 U.S.-brokered Abraham Accords that noticed Israel set up ties with two of the dominion’s neighbors, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain.
But throughout U.S. President Joe Biden’s tour of the Middle East final yr, the Saudi civil aviation authority introduced that it was lifting overflight restrictions on “all carriers,” paving the way in which for Israeli planes to make use of Saudi airspace.
The kingdom denied on the time that the transfer was “a precursor to any further steps” towards normalization.
Riyadh has repeatedly mentioned it might keep on with the decades-old Arab League place of not establishing official ties with Israel till the battle with the Palestinians is resolved.
Normalization push
Yet in latest months, Riyadh and Washington have held talks on Saudi situations for progress on normalization, together with safety ensures and help with a civilian nuclear program with uranium enrichment capability, in keeping with individuals briefed on the conferences.
Hesham Alghannam, a Saudi analyst on the Naif Arab University for Security Sciences in Riyadh, instructed AFP this week that Saudi Arabia must know whether or not the Israelis are “actively working towards making tangible progress on resolving the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.”
After a gathering on Saturday at which Sudairi introduced a replica of his credentials, Majdi al-Khaldi, Palestinian presidential adviser for diplomatic affairs, mentioned he “welcomed” the appointment, official Palestinian news company Wafa reported.
It “will contribute to strengthening the strong and solid brotherly relations that bind the two countries and the two brotherly peoples,” Khaldi mentioned.
A spokesman for the Israeli overseas ministry provided no rapid remark, referring AFP to latest feedback by Foreign Minister Eli Cohen that “peace between Israel and Saudi Arabia is a matter of time.”
Saturday’s transfer “gives insight into how diplomatic relations might be between Saudi Arabia and Israel: a Saudi ambassador to Palestine with a file for Israel,” mentioned Aziz Alghashian, a Saudi analyst and professional on Saudi-Israeli relations.
“The immediate signal is to treat Saudi demands for Israeli concessions seriously.”
Source: www.dailysabah.com
