Rapprochement in Israel-Saudi Foreign Policy: Moving on Tiptoes to a Normalization Process?

Abstract

The possibility of a Saudi rapprochement with Israel has been continuously influenced by the the domestic barriers within the Saudi community and the Saudi historical narratives on the regional security perceptions of the Saudi decision-makers. After the appointment of Prince Mohammed bin Salman as the Minister of Defense in 2015, King Salman's government adopted a new discourse in domestic and foreign policy built upon a redefined Saudi identity rhetorically distanced from its Islamic neighbours and moved towards a nationalised tone. The unstable nature of the regional security dynamics forces the kingdom to actively reconstruct new security routines based on the emerging regional security dynamics and repositions the alliances. At this juncture, this research aims at understanding the rationality of the rise and fall of the intensity of Saudi foreign policy towards a normalisation process with Israel within the borders of the redefined Saudi national identity and regional threat perceptions.