The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has announced its official stance regarding the signing of a peace agreement with Israel.
The official announcement was made by Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud during an interview with Al Arabiya TV yesterday, where he confirmed that peace between Riyadh and Tel Aviv is contingent upon the establishment of a Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital.
Bin Farhan responded to a question regarding several Arab countries normalizing relations with Israel, stating that this is a sovereign decision for the parties that agreed to this measure. He hopes it will have a positive impact on the peace process and achieve what everyone aims for, which is a Palestinian state with its capital in East Jerusalem.
He continued, "We hope that what has happened motivates Israel to engage in serious negotiations with the Palestinians to reach a final solution to this issue and to achieve a just settlement that meets our aspirations. I am confident that the countries that signed these agreements are keen to achieve this just as we are."
Bin Farhan noted that the matter of normalizing relations is contingent upon achieving peace and establishing the Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital, according to the Arab Peace Initiative, emphasizing that the Arab Peace Initiative remains the main framework for his country's relations with Israel.
It is worth mentioning that the "Arab Peace Plan" or "Arab Peace Initiative" was launched by the late Saudi King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz (who was then Crown Prince) and aims to establish a Palestinian state, the return of refugees, and withdrawal from the occupied Golan Heights, in exchange for peace with Israel.
According to the text of the initiative, as reported by the Arab League's website, the League's Council calls on Israel to reconsider its policies, to lean toward peace, declaring that a just peace is its strategic option. It demands that Israel first withdraw completely from the occupied Arab territories, including the Syrian Golan and up to the June 4, 1967 line, as well as other territories still occupied in southern Lebanon. Secondly, it calls for a fair solution to the Palestinian refugee issue as agreed upon according to UN General Assembly Resolution 194, and thirdly, for the acceptance of an independent, sovereign Palestinian state on the territories occupied since June 4, 1967 in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, with East Jerusalem as its capital.
The initiative includes, after Israel's implementation of the aforementioned, that Arab countries consider the Arab-Israeli conflict as resolved and enter into a peace agreement with Israel, achieving security for all countries in the region. Secondly, it entails establishing normal relations with Israel within the framework of this comprehensive peace and thirdly, ensuring the rejection of all forms of Palestinian resettlement that contradicts the special status of the host Arab countries.
