Lapid Sees No Quick Breakthrough with Saudi Arabia

YERUSHALAYIM (Reuters/Hamodia) – Reaching a deal to normalize ties between Israel and Saudi Arabia will be “a long and cautious process,” but Israel believes it can happen, according to Foreign Minister Yair Lapid.

Israel has said it hopes to build on its 2020 U.S.-brokered accords with four Muslim nations and establish diplomatic relations with Saudi Arabia.

Saudi Arabia, home to Islam’s holiest two sites, has conditioned any eventual normalization with Israel on the addressing of the Palestinians’ quest for statehood.

Lapid, speaking on Israel’s Army Radio on Monday, said that should an agreement emerge, it would not come in a surprise announcement like it did with previous deals, which include agreements with the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain.

“We will not wake up one morning to a surprise, rather it will be a long and cautious process on both sides. There are security interests for both countries,” Lapid said.

He added it would be a “slow process of small details” but that he believed a deal could be reached.

“We are working on this with the Americans, with some of our friends in the Gulf countries, in many different echelons. Egypt is of course a significant player,” Lapid said.

Shifting continents, Lapid declared on Tuesday that “Israel is back in Africa.”

“We will cooperate to deliver food security for millions,” says Lapid, speaking by videolink to a conference organized by Israel’s embassy in Paris, reported by The Times of Israel.

“We will coordinate in the fight against terrorism to ensure peace and stability. We will collaborate in high-tech to create opportunities for millions of Israelis and Africans alike. We will cultivate deeper diplomatic ties to cement our historic and deeply-rooted partnership.”

The Paris conference on Israel-Africa ties has attracted several French and African media outlets, and is attended by a number of African diplomats.

Israel currently has diplomatic ties with all but 9 of the 54 African countries, and the Abraham Accords have given fresh impetus to developing relations on the continent.

Israel, one of only two non-African nations to share a border with Africa, became an observer to the African Union in 2021.

Now, Israel says, it is seeking a partnership between equals, not an aid relationship.

“Israel understands the power of Africa,” says Lapid. “And Africa understands that Israel is a force for good.”

“In the face of global challenges, countries that cooperative will thrive, while countries that isolate will fall behind,” he said.