MBS meets AIPAC, anti-BDS leaders during US visit
Leaked itinerary shows bin Salman has met leaders of several right-wing Jewish organisations during ongoing US tour.
Al Jazeera English, 29 March 2018
Mohammed bin Salman meets Bloomberg founder and former NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg
[Anadolu/Saudi Kingdom Council/Handout]
Mohammed bin Salman, the crown prince of Saudi Arabia, known as MBS, has met leaders from a number of right-wing Jewish organisations during his tour of the United States.
The groups, which have donated millions to illegal settlement building and the fight against BDS (the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions) movement, include officials from AIPAC, Stand Up for Israel (ADL) and the Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA).
According to a leaked copy of his itinerary, Haaretz reported that bin Salman also met with leaders from the Conference of Presidents, B'nai B'rith and the American Jewish Committee (AJC).
AIPAC, ADL and the JFNA have long targeted BDS, a non-violent movement that seeks to economically pressure Israel into providing equal rights and a right of return to Palestinians.
Some of the pro-Israel US groups have spent millions in lobbying for the Combating BDS Act, a bill that seeks to stifle BDS.
Meanwhile, JFNA gave almost $6m to illegal Israeli settlements between 2012 and 2015.
JFNA supports a number of settlements over the Green Line (the border separating pre-1967 Israel from the Occupied Palestinian Territories), and helps families of Jews suspected or convicted of violence against Palestinians.
'Pro-Israelis guard Washington'
While Saudi Arabia does not officially recognise Israel, analysts have repeatedly said the overtures by bin Salman signal a warming of ties between the two countries.
Mahjoob Zweiri, the director of the Gulf Studies Programme at Qatar University, said the bin Salman visit was "a PR campaign aimed to represent a new face of the kingdom to the US, one that was flexible and willing to change".
"There was an old understanding from Arab leaders that the gates for Washington, DC are guarded by pro-Israeli leaders. This includes business leaders, groups such as AIPAC and others linked to Israel," Zweiri told Al Jazeera.
"MBS is following that trend, he's trying to court the US and show them that he supports their plan for Israel-Palestine and their decision to move the US embassy to Jerusalem.
"Another dimension is that when Republicans are in power, it's widely believed they have closer ties to Israel and the Israeli agenda.
"US President Donald Trump's 'deal of the century,' which recognises Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, could also see a normalising of relations between Saudi Arabia and Israel, and force the Palestinians to agree to Israeli demands."
As part of his two-week tour, bin Salman has already met Bill and Hillary Clinton, Senator Chuck Schumer, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, and former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
He is expected to meet Oprah Winfrey, a media mogul and major opinion-maker in the US in the coming days.
Other notable media meetings include dinner with Rupert Murdoch, CIA director and soon to be Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Vice President Mike Pence, Defence Secretary James Mattis and Trump's senior adviser and son-in-law, Jared Kushner.
Jewish Insider's Daily Kickoff: March 27, 2018
Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman meeting with Jewish leaders today in NYC | Broidy sues Muzin | How Trump's vendetta could end up helping Zucker's CNN
Jewish Insider Staff, March 27, 2018
SCOOP: We're told that Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, also known as MBS, is expected to meet with Jewish leaders later today in New York City. Groups represented at the meeting will include AIPAC, the Conference of Presidents, Jewish Federations of North America, ADL, AJC and B'nai B'rith.
SPOTTED YESTERDAY: MBS, along with approximately 50 Saudi and Secret Service agents, enjoying an afternoon visit to Bar Masa on the 4th floor of the Time Warner Center. NYPD SWAT teams were seen stationed outside the TWC. [Pic]
Also yesterday: MBS, sans royal robes, met with executives from Softbank including Masayoshi Son and Ron Fisher. [Pic] Noteworthy: Robert Reffkin, CEO of the Softbank-backed Compass, appears in the back of the photo but his Israeli co-founder Ori Allon does not. Also missing is WeWork's Israeli CEO Adam Neumann whose company received a $4.4B investment from Softbank last year.
"Everyone Loves Israel Now: There's much more to the Arab world's newfound friendship with Israel than ganging up on Iran" by Shai Feldman and Tamara Cofman Wittes: "The new regional environment also presents Israel with new dilemmas it did not face when Sunni Arab states were uniformly hostile...Traditionally, Israel has used its considerable political influence to prevent the United States, Europe, and even Russia from selling Arab militaries advanced technology that might erode the country’s vaunted “qualitative military edge.” ... But what to do now that the eager seekers of such weapons and technology are Israel’s newfound “friends”? Can Israel afford the risk that in the future these states — which would then be much better equipped — might return to open confrontation?" [ForeignPolicy]
"Saudi crown prince comes under fire as he visits US" by Bruce Riedel: "The Saudi requests for looser restrictions on their plans to acquire nuclear power reactors were undermined by the crown prince’s public promise to seek nuclear weapons if Iran tries to do so if the nuclear deal collapses... Israel has been more critical of any loosening in the nuclear power requirements for Saudi Arabia in recent weeks. Earlier this month, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu lobbied against any deal for the Saudis, according to press reports. The Saudis' lobbying campaign will face formidable opposition if the Israelis are determined to block a deal. The pretense that the Saudi and Israeli governments are collaborating discretely against Iran will also be exposed." [AlMonitor]
[...]
Saudi de facto leader meets leaders of pro-Israeli lobbies in US
PressTV, March 30, 2018
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has met with the leaders of a number of pro-Israeli lobbying groups during his tour of the United States as the kingdom is moving towards normalization of diplomatic relations with the Tel Aviv regime at the expense of the Palestinian issue.
According to a leaked copy of his itinerary, the Israeli Haaretz daily reported that bin Salman had conferred with officials from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), Stand Up for Israel (ADL), the Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA), Presidents' Conference, B'nai B'rith and the American Jewish Committee (AJC).
The meeting comes as AIPAC, ADL and the JFNA have long fought against the pro-Palestine movement Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS), and spared no efforts to confront the global campaign.
Additionally, the groups donated millions to the Israeli regime to advance its expansionist policies and construct more settler units on occupied Palestinian territories.
Speaking in an interview with France 24 television news network on December 13, 2017, Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir said the kingdom has a “roadmap” to establish full diplomatic ties with the Tel Aviv regime.
In mid-November last year, a Lebanese paper published a secret document showing that the Saudis were willing to normalize relations with Israel as part of a US-led Israeli-Palestinian peace effort and unite Saudi-allied countries against Iran.
The document, published by al-Akhbar daily, was a letter from the Saudi foreign minister to bin Salman, explaining why it was in the kingdom’s interest to normalize relations with Israel. The letter said a rapprochement between Saudi Arabia and Israel has risks for the kingdom due to the strength of the Palestinian cause among Muslims.
The Saudis' willingness to boost ties with Israel has offended several Arab countries, including Jordan.
As for the Palestinian refugee issue, the letter says the Saudis would be willing to help the estimated five million Palestinian refugees worldwide settle in the host countries rather than being brought back to the occupied Palestinian territories.
The Israeli military’s chief-of-staff, Gadi Eizenkot, recently said the regime was ready to share intelligence with Saudi Arabia on Iran.
Israeli Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz has indicated that Israel has had secret contacts with Saudi Arabia and other Arab countries over their mutual concerns about Iran, an apparent first acknowledgment by a senior official about covert dealings. He made the comments in November last year but did not specify the nature of the contacts.
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