Saudi King Salman said Tuesday that the kingdom was committed to an independent Palestinian state with Israeli-occupied East Jerusalem as its capital, ahead of a U.S.-led conference on Middle East peace and security.
The monarch was speaking during a meeting with visiting Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Riyadh. King Salman said his country “permanently stands by Palestine and its people’s right to an independent state with East Jerusalem as its capital,” the official Saudi Press Agency reported.
The official Palestinian news agency WAFA had quoted the Palestinian ambassador in Saudi Arabia as saying “the visit is a continuation of the communication between the two leaderships under difficult international circumstances, as well as attempts to terminate the Palestinian cause.”
A senior Palestinian official said the visit had come at the invitation of the Saudi king.
The king’s pledge came as the United States is expected to offer hints of its proposals for peace between Israel and the Palestinians at a conference in Poland.
Announcing the two-day conference last month, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that foreign ministers from around the world would attend to take up the “destabilizing influence” of Iran in the Middle East.
But with most major European powers sending low-level representation, the U.S. and Poland have toned down the agenda, saying the gathering is not focused on Iran but rather looking more broadly at the Middle East.
U.S. President Donald Trump’s son-in-law and adviser Jared Kushner, who has been putting the final touches on a “deal of the century” for the Middle East, will make a rare speaking appearance Thursday.
Kushner, whose family is close to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, is not expected to unveil the proposal until after April 9 elections in Israel.
Kushner will reportedly visit the Middle East at end of this month, during which he will make a stop in Saudi Arabia.
The Trump administration faces a difficult task in selling any deal to the Palestinian Authority, which remains livid over his landmark 2017 decision to recognize Occupied Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
The Palestinian government, which has labeled the Warsaw conference an “American conspiracy,” has refused talks with the U.S. until it starts what it calls a more balanced policy.
Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki Monday asked Arab countries to boycott or downgrade their representation at the Poland conference, which begins Wednesday. Lebanon said it would boycott the summit, while Saudi Arabia and the UAE will send their foreign ministers. Netanyahu is expected to attend. with Agencies.
This article has been adapted from its original source.
