Israel’s UN envoy owns up to ties with dozen Arab states

Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations Danny Danon has admitted that Tel Aviv has ties with “a dozen” Arab countries despite their refusal to officially recognize the Israeli regime.

“They still do not vote with us, but I can say that we have a relationship with them,” Danon told the Israeli news website Ynet on Monday, adding that those Muslim and Arab countries “understand the potential of relations with Israel.”

The revelation came as Saudi Arabia has been rumored to have formed an alliance with Israel in a bid to fend off Iran’s growing influence in the Middle East.

On November 14, Lebanon’s al-Akhbar daily published a secret undated letter from Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman that puts forward a plan to normalize ties with Israel despite “risks” of a public backlash.

“I have the honor to submit to you the draft of the plan to establish relations between the kingdom and the State of Israel, based on the strategic partnership agreement with the United States of America, which was discussed with the secretary of state,” the letter reads.

Jubeir referred to Israel as a “state” while Saudi Arabia, along with other Arab League member countries, does not formally recognize the occupying entity.

However, in an interview with the Egyptian CBC television network, the Saudi foreign minister denied that his country is getting closer to Israel, saying, “There are no relations between Saudi Arabia and Israel.”

Later on November 19, Israeli Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz for the first time revealed that Tel Aviv has had covert contacts with Saudi Arabia.

“We have ties that are indeed partly covert with many Muslim and Arab countries, and usually [we are] the party that is not ashamed,” Steinitz said in an interview on Army Radio.