In an interview published on Monday, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, recognized Israel’s right to exist and discussed shared interests between the Jewish state and the larger Arab world.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with Jeffrey Goldberg of The Atlantic, Salman was asked whether he believes “the Jewish people have a right to a nation-state in at least part of their ancestral homeland?”
The Crown Prince replied:
I believe that each people, anywhere, has a right to live in their peaceful nation. I believe the Palestinians and the Israelis have the right to have their own land. But we have to have a peace agreement to assure the stability for everyone and to have normal relations.
Here is a transcript of more of the exchange:
Goldberg: You have no religious-based objection to the existence of Israel?
MbS: We have religious concerns about the fate of the holy mosque in Jerusalem and about the rights of the Palestinian people. This is what we have. We don’t have any objection against any other people.
…
Goldberg: Do you think Iran is bringing you and Israel together? Without Iran, could you imagine a situation in which you had other interests in common with Israel?
MbS: Israel is a big economy compared to their size and it’s a growing economy, and of course there are a lot of interests we share with Israel and if there is peace, there would be a lot of interest between Israel and the Gulf Cooperation Council countries and countries like Egypt and Jordan.
Read the full interview here.