Benjamin Netanyahu - International Studies of Strategic and Geopolitics

Netanyahu discusses with US security advisor ‘normalizing ties’ with Saudi Arabia

19Jan

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Middle East

Netanyahu discusses with US security advisor ‘normalizing ties’ with Saudi Arabia

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu discussed normalizing ties with Saudi Arabia in talks with visiting White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan on Thursday, his office said. Netanyahu, who returned to power last month with the formation of a new government, was also at the helm in 2020 when Israel established ties with the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Morocco as part of the Abraham Accords. The Israeli premier has repeatedly expressed his desire to see Saudi Arabia, the birthplace of Islam, join the list. In their talks, Netanyahu and Sullivan discussed “measures to deepen the Abraham Accords and expand the cycle of peace, with an emphasis on a breakthrough with Saudi,” the Israeli leader's office said in a statement. They also discussed joint efforts to curb Ira...

In Power With Netanyahu, Ultra-Orthodox Parties Chart Israel’s Future

By Isabel Kershner * JERUSALEM — To preserve his new government, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel is making significant concessions to far-right political parties on Palestinian issues, judicial independence and police powers, but also less noticed moves on behalf of another key member of his coalition: parties that represent the fast-growing ultra-Orthodox public. Members of Israel’s ultra-Orthodox community have long enjoyed benefits unavailable to many other Israeli citizens: exemption from army service for Torah students, government stipends for those choosing full-time religious study over work and separate schools that receive state funds even though their curriculums barely teach government-mandated subjects. Those benefits have fueled resentment among large segmen...

Netanyahu has his sights set on peace with Saudi Arabia – but is it feasible?

While peace with Riyadh is a top priority for the incoming government, there are many significant barriers in the way, despite the common interests the two nations share with regard to Iran, experts say. Prime Minister-designate Benjamin Netanyahu said last week that he hopes to bring about "a full, formal peace" with Saudi Arabia, as Israel has done with other Gulf states. However, analysts say there are several significant obstacles to achieving full normalization with the Saudis. According to Eytan Gilboa, professor of political science at Bar-Ilan University and senior fellow at the Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security (JISS), the chances of peace between Jerusalem and Riyadh are "low." For starters, noted Gilboa, the Saudis have been consistent in their call for Palestinia...