OCCUPIED JERUSALEM — Israel knew that Saudi Arabia planned
to appoint a non-resident ambassador to the Palestinians, but the matter was
not coordinated with I
srael, Foreign Minister Eli Cohen told 103FM on Sunday.
اضافة اعلان
Saudi Arabia named its first ambassador to Palestine on
Saturday. The kingdom’s ambassador to Jordan,
Nayef bin Bandar Al-Sudairi, will
serve as non-resident ambassador extraordinary as well as “consul-general in
Jerusalem,” in addition to his responsibilities in Amman.
This declaration does not mean there will be a
Saudi consulate to the Palestinians in occupied Jerusalem, a move that would have had
to have been coordinated with Israel. Cohen said, “We will not allow the
opening of any diplomatic representation [to the Palestinians] in Jerusalem,”
Jerusalem Post reported.
The move came as the
US and Saudi Arabia have been negotiating an Israeli-Saudi peace agreement, along with some kind of advanced
defense
cooperation between Washington and Riyadh,.
Saudi Arabia has long said Israel must make concessions
related to the Palestinians before it would recognize the Jewish state.
Tri-lateral talks
Cohen said the ambassador’s appointment came “on the
background of the advancement of talks between the US and the Saudis regarding
Israel. The Saudis wanted to send a
message to the Palestinians that they
didn’t forget them.”
The negotiations are thus far only between Washington and
Riyadh, and Jerusalem has not yet been brought in, but US officials have
updated Israel about the Saudis’ demands. While
Netanyahu agreed to stop plans
to apply sovereignty to Israeli settlements in Judea and Samaria in exchange
for the Abraham Accords with the United Arab Emirates in 2020, diplomatic
sources have said that
Saudi Arabia expects Israel to take proactive steps
toward a Palestinian state.
Riyadh has also asked Washington for help in
developing a civilian uranium enrichment program as part of the agreement. Cohen reiterated
his suggestion that, instead, the US offer the kingdom a nuclear defense pact
by which it would strike Iran if it bombed Saudi Arabia.
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