Saudi Arabia on Wednesday ruled out establishing diplomatic ties with Israel without the recognition of an independent Palestinian state.
The oil-wealthy monarchy said it had communicated its "firm position" to the United States that "there will no diplomatic relations with Israel unless the independent Palestinian state is recognized."
In a statement from its Foreign Ministry, Saudi Arabia also demanded that the ongoing Israeli onslaught in the Gaza Strip be halted and all Israeli forces withdraw from the area.
Earlier this week, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited Saudi Arabia as part of a current trip to the Middle East in a push for a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war that has raged since October followingOct. 7 attack.
The top US diplomat met Saudi Arabia's de-facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Monday. On Wednesday, he was in Israel.
Riyadh suspended talks with the US on normalizing ties with Israel due to the Israeli offensive in the densely populated Gaza Strip, Saudi diplomatic sources told dpa in October.
