The Biden administration is intent on normalizing Israel-Saudi ties, US Deputy Assistant Secretary for Israeli-Palestinian Affairs Andrew Miller told The Jerusalem Post Annual Conference in New York on Monday.
“We have both the interest and the bandwidth to promote Israeli Saudi normalization, which would certainly be a major achievement,” Miller said during an onstage interview with The Jerusalem Post Editor-in-Chief Avi Mayer.
“It's worth noting that the Biden administration was able to produce the first tangible step towards Israeli-Saudi normalization in opening up Saudi airspace to civilian aircraft from Israel,” he explained.
“That's just the first step,” Miller said, adding that “it's something that we're seeking to build on to expand that circle of peace, which is necessary to create a more integrated region,” one that is more “prosperous” and “a peaceful” one.
Miller emphasized that Saudi Arabia was not the only Arab or Muslim nation that could normalize ties with Israel as part of an expanded Abraham Accords created in 2020, under whose rubric four Arab nations agreed to establish diplomatic relations with Israel.
“To be very clear, the Biden administration supports expanding and deepening the Abraham Accords with other normalization agreements,” Miller said.
He also echoed other speakers at the conference in emphasizing the Biden administration’s commitment to preventing a nuclear Iran.
US priorities in the Middle East
US President Joe Biden “has been very clear, not only throughout his tenure as president… that Iran will never be allowed to develop a nuclear weapon,” Miller said.
“The president stands by that commitment, and we will continue to pursue it through all potential measures. We continue to believe that the most lasting, that the most durable solution is a diplomatic one.
“But we can achieve a more effective diplomatic outcome if it's backed up by pressure and deterrence,” he explained.