Saudi Arabia and Israel Move Closer Together

Billionaire Saudi prince al-Waleed bin Talal: will side with Israel if there is a new Palestinian uprising; Saudi Arabia has reached political maturity and can make a durable alliance with the Jewish nation

Poll: 24% of Saudi people see Israel as an ally against Iran

 

The Saudi strategic position has become tenuous in the last couple of years. The Iranian Nuclear deal has been signed paving the way for Iran as a nuclear power; the Saudis are involved in a military coalition in support of the legitimate Sunni Yemeni government against Shi'ite Houthi rebels; and the US is fast becoming self-sufficient in energy, and less inclined to put boots on the ground for Saudia Arabia. Thus, Saudi Arabia has been casting around for allies in what promises to be a long and drawn-out strategic and tactical battle against nuclear-ambitious Iran's push for Middle East domination. This week there were some noteworthy developments.

According to Kuwaiti Al Qabas Arabic daily, October 27, Saudi Prince and entrepreneur, al-Waleed bin Talal, has stated that his country must reconsider its regional commitments and devise a new strategy to combat Iran's increasing influence in the Gulf States.  Prince  al-Waleed bin Talal believes that Riyadh and Tel Aviv should form a defense pact to deter possible Iranian moves considering developments in Syria and Moscow's military intervention.

The Kuwaiti News Agency (KUNA) quoted the Saudi Prince:

The whole Middle-East dispute is tantamount to a matter of life and death for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia from my vantage point, and I know that  the Iranians seek to unseat the Saudi regime by playing the Palestinian card. Hence, to foil their plots Saudi Arabia and Israel must bolster their relations and form a united front to stymie Tehran's ambitious agenda.

The Prince added that Riyadh and Tel Aviv must achieve a modus vivendi, because Saudi policy in regard to the Arab-Israeli crisis is no longer tenable. The Prince continued that Iran seeks to buttress its presence in the Mediterranean by supporting the Assad regime in Syria,  and to the chagrin of Riyadh and its sister Gulf sheikdoms, Putin's Russia has become a real co-belligerent force in the Syrian 4-year-old civil war by attacking CIA-trained rebels.

Thus, it is of paramount importance that a Saudi-Israeli nexus frustrate the developing Russia-Iran-Hezbollah axis. The Prince said:

I will side with the Jewish nation and its democratic aspirations in case of outbreak of a Palestinian Intifada (uprising) and  I shall exert all my influence to break any ominous Arab initiatives set to condemn Tel Aviv, because I deem the Arab-Israeli entente and future friendship necessary to impede the Iranian dangerous encroachment.

It is very significant that the Prince is talking about siding with the Jewish nation not some amorphous 'Israeli political entity.' The Prince also stated that Iranian influence in Bahrain, which has a US Sixth Fleet base, affects Saudi vital interests and is worrying.

The interview with the Prince was not the only good news for Israel. A new survey reveals rarely seen aspects of public political opinion inside Saudi Arabia.

The Institute for Policy and Strategy (IPS) at IDC Herzliya and University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee conducted a random poll in Arabic in Saudi Arabia from the end of May and into June. It was controlled for gender, cell phone/land line numbers and urban/rural areas. The poll and its results achieved extensive media coverage in leading media organizations around the world and in Israel, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, Fox News, ABC News, Channel 2 News and others.  

Among the key findings:

• Only 18.4% of Saudis consider Israel as the biggest threat to Saudi Arabia
• 23.7% believe Saudi Arabia should fight Iran alongside Israel.

 Other findings were:

• 85.5% support the Saudi-Arab Peace Initiative
• 53% of those polled believe Iran is the biggest threat to Saudi Arabia; ISIS polled second at 22.1%; as mentioned, only 18.4% of Saudis consider Israel to be Saudi Arabia's biggest threat
• 52.6% believe Saudi Arabia needs to acquire a nuclear weapon if Iran does
• 70.9% believe Iran is a threat to Saudi sovereignty

Growing common interests of Israel, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and the Emirates increase the possibility of forcing the Palestinians to the negotiation table and their finally recognizing Israel as a Jewish state and making an agreement that will include ending the conflict and renouncing all their claims against Israel.