US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Thursday called on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu not to undermine the prospects for a Palestinian state, following talks in Saudi Arabia during which Riyadh stressed linking normalization to peace with the Palestinians.
State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said that at the end of the visit to Saudi Arabia, Blinken held telephone talks with Netanyahu to discuss "deepening Israel's integration" in the Middle East through normalization with countries in the region.
Miller said Blinken "discussed the need to fulfill pledges made at regional meetings in Aqaba and Sharm el-Sheikh to avoid measures that undermine the prospects for a two-state solution," referring to talks earlier this year in Jordan and Egypt that brought together Israeli, Palestinian and U.S. officials.
In the Riyadh talks, Blinken said Washington was working to integrate Israel into the Middle East, deepening and expanding existing agreements.
However, the Saudi foreign minister commented that "without peace with the Palestinians, any normalization with Israel will be of limited benefit."
In Netanyahu's previous term, Israel normalized its relations with the UAE, Morocco and Bahrain in what was then known as the Abraham Accords.
Netanyahu returned to power at the head of the most right-wing and extreme government in the history of Israeli governments, which includes ministers opposed to Palestinian statehood.