Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan said that he "does not know whether there is an imminent normalization deal between his country and Israel."
In an interview with CNN, the Saudi foreign minister added that the normalization of Israel's position within the Middle East region would bring tremendous benefits to the entire region, and that it would be extremely beneficial economically, socially and in terms of security, as he put it.
But he stressed that normalization could not succeed in the region "unless we deal with the Palestinian issue and were able to establish a Palestinian state on the 1967 borders, because this would give the Palestinians dignity and give them their rights."
"If we can find a way towards that, then I think we can see a much safer region and a more prosperous region, where everyone can contribute to its success, including Israel," he said.
And the Saudi Foreign Minister said last January that "normalization with Israel depends on achieving peace and achieving the Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital, according to the Arab Peace Initiative."
The Arab Peace Initiative, also known as the "Saudi Initiative," was a proposal adopted by the Arab League at its summit in Beirut in 2002.
The initiative provides for the establishment of an internationally recognized Palestinian state on the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital, a just solution to the Palestinian refugee issue, and Israel's withdrawal from the occupied Syrian Golan Heights and the lands still occupied in southern Lebanon, in exchange for Arab countries' recognition of Israel and normalization of relations with it.
On March 17th, Israeli Intelligence Minister Eli Cohen expected that 3 Arab countries - including Saudi Arabia - would sign new normalization agreements with his country in the near future.
Israel and Bahrain concluded many agreements in various fields, and officials from the two countries have exchanged visits since Manama and Abu Dhabi signed two agreements in Washington in mid-September last year to normalize their relations with Tel Aviv.
In addition to these two Gulf states, Morocco and Sudan also signed, in 2020, two agreements to normalize their relations with Israel.
Egypt was the first Arab country to have a peace treaty with Israel in 1979, followed by Jordan by signing the Wadi Araba agreement in 1994.