US Secretary of State Marco Rubio expressed confidence today that several Arab countries will join the so-called Abraham Accords to normalize relations with Israel this year.
"We have an office for the Abraham Accords that is actively working to identify a number of countries that have already joined, and I think we will have good news, certainly before the end of this year, from a number of other countries that are ready to join that alliance," Rubio said, addressing a congressional committee.
However, Rubio did not provide any details about the countries in question.
The Abraham Accords, sponsored by US President Donald Trump in 2020 during his first term in the White House, led to the normalization of relations between Israel and three Arab countries: the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Morocco.
But many Arab countries have so far refused to join this process, especially Saudi Arabia, as well as Israel's neighbors Syria and Lebanon.
Trump said last week, during an official visit to Riyadh, that he "sincerely hopes" that Saudi Arabia will normalize relations with Israel.
Since the war in Gaza was triggered by the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas's attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, Riyadh has ruled out any normalization of relations with Israel without the creation of a sovereign and viable Palestinian state, a project opposed by the government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
When asked in Congress about Saudi Arabia's position, Rubio said that the country "still has the desire to do it."
Bonus video:
