The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday that Saudi Arabia has begun offering funding to the Palestinian Authority in recent months in an attempt to reduce resistance in Ramallah to possible normalization with Israel. The report, based on "current Saudi officials and former Palestinian officials involved in the contacts" with the kingdom, said that Saudi sources said they were trying to ensure Mahmoud Abbas' support for Saudi Arabia's open relations with Israel, thereby legitimizing the normalization process if and when it matures.
In fact, they claim, Abbas' support will render criticism in the Arab world meaningless if the process of normalizing relations between Riyadh and Jerusalem is completed, and they cannot claim that Riyadh "sacrificed the Palestinian effort to establish an independent state in order to advance its interests."
According to the report, the Palestinian Authority is expected to send a delegation of senior officials from Ramallah to the kingdom to discuss what Riyadh can do in the framework of normalization talks to promote a Palestinian state. According to reports in recent months, as part of the emerging deal, Israel will be required to make significant concessions to the Palestinians regarding settlements and routine life for the Palestinian population.
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