US to sweeten Saudi-Israel normalisation for Riyadh with unprecedented defence treaty

Saudi Arabia could be offered an unprecedented defence deal by the US to sweeten a normalisation agreement with Israel, which has hit the rocks due to the war on Gaza, according to a report.

The treaty would include a pledge from Washington to defend Saudi Arabia if it was attacked and likely open the door to higher-grade US-made weaponry, according to The Wall Street Journal, something unparalleled in the region.

It would be the first mutual defence pact agreed by Washington with a foreign power since 1960 when it signed the Treaty of Mutual Cooperation and Security with Japan and the first with an authoritarian state, the Business Daily reported.

The treaty would not only guarantee Washington's defensive support but also give the US access to Saudi territory and prohibit the construction of Chinese bases inside the kingdom, something which has complicated US-UAE relations.

Such a treaty would require a two-thirds majority of Congress to become law, which would unlikely happen without Israel-Saudi normalisation being tied into the agreement.

The US and Saudi Arabia are also pursuing a separate Defense Cooperation Agreement which does not need approval from Congress and would bolster arms sales, intelligence sharing, and cooperation on Iran and terrorism with Riyadh.

Saudi Arabia has also pushed the US for support in establishing a nuclear civilian programme, which Washington has so far refused with Riyadh turning to France and China to pile on the pressure.

A broader defence treaty would likely worsen relations with Iran but reset US ties with Saudi Arabia which hit a low during Joe Biden's election campaign when he pledged to make Riyadh a pariah over the leadership of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Since Biden became president, relations have slowly improved.

Biden had hoped to broker a normalisation agreement between Israel and Saudi Arabia before the November presidential elections but the brutal war on Gaza, which has killed over 31,100 Palestinians, has ultimately stalled the process.

Riyadh insists that it will only normalise relations if concrete steps toward the establishment of an independent Palestinian state are taken, something the Israeli government has ruled out.