US President Donald Trump has claimed that Saudi Arabia could be willing to accept assistance from Israel in operations against Yemen’s Houthi rebels.
Speaking to reporters on Friday, Trump was asked whether Saudi Arabia would accept Israeli support in confronting the Houthis. He responded that, in his view, the kingdom should do so.
When questioned about whether he had discussed the matter with Saudi leaders, the US president said he believed Saudi Arabia would agree to the proposal.
Trump also suggested that efforts to bring Saudi Arabia into the Abraham Accords could gain momentum, potentially paving the way for the kingdom to normalise relations with Israel.
He indicated that the prospects for Saudi Arabia joining the agreements could now be stronger than before.
However, Saudi Arabia has not issued any official confirmation regarding the possibility of accepting Israeli assistance or joining the Abraham Accords.
Saudi Arabia has yet to establish formal diplomatic relations with Israel. Normalising ties between the two countries has remained one of the key objectives of Trump’s Middle East policy.
Previously, Trump had also linked a potential civilian nuclear cooperation agreement with Saudi Arabia to progress towards normalising relations between Riyadh and Israel.
