They also discuss joint efforts to curb Iran’s nuclear program
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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan on Thursday to discuss normalizing relations with Saudi Arabia, his office said.
Netanyahu, who returned to power last month with the formation of a new government, was also at the helm in 2020 when Israel established ties with the UAE, Bahrain and Morocco as part of the Abraham Accords.
Israel’s prime minister has repeatedly said he wants Saudi Arabia, the cradle of Islam, to join the list.
At the meeting, Netanyahu and Sullivan discussed “measures to deepen the Abrahamic Accords and extend the cycle of peace, with an emphasis on breakthroughs with Saudi Arabia,” the Israeli leader’s office said in a statement. .
They also discussed joint efforts to curb Iran’s nuclear program and its regional activities. Netanyahu thanked President Joe Biden for his commitment to prevent Tehran from acquiring nuclear weapons, the statement said.
In a televised address relayed by his office, Prime Minister Netanyahu said, “You have come at a special time because we have grave challenges to security and great opportunities for peace.
“I am confident that by working together, we can meet the challenges and realize the opportunities,” he said. “It will not only strengthen our extraordinary alliance, but it will also change the region and change history.”
Netanyahu and Sullivan also discussed Ukraine, as well as the burgeoning defense partnership between Russia and Iran and its implications for security in the Middle East.
Sullivan’s visit, the first by a senior U.S. official since Netanyahu’s new government was sworn in, met with President Isaac Herzog on Wednesday to discuss “how to deepen strategic cooperation,” Herzog’s office said. said.