Major-General Anwar Ishqi, head of the Saudi Center for Strategic Studies,said that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's latest statements were made to designate Riyadh's direction in its foreign policy rather than signal a shift in Saudi Arabia's stance on the Palestinian issue.
"The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia wants to oversee the Palestinian-Israeli negotiations. Adding to the [opposing] sides' consensus, it is possible to achieve success in resolving the Palestinian issue," Ishqi underlined.
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Palestinian political scientist Abdel Qader Yasin, for his part, told Sputnik that "when making a statement on the Palestinian issue, Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman equalized the victim and the executioner."
According to Yasin, the statement can be perceived as a logical development of Saudi Arabia's external policy.
He added that "Saudi Arabia cannot assume the role of a mediator in the Palestinian-Israeli negotiating process since the mediator should take the same approach towards both the Palestinians and the Israelis, something that is condemnatory for any Arab country."
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The analysts' remarks came after Mohammed bin Salman said in an interview with the Atlantic that "the Palestinians and the Israelis have the right to have their own land" and that a peace agreement is needed in order "to assure the stability for everyone and to have normal relations."
While Riyadh has no diplomatic ties with Tel Aviv, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu once admitted that Israel has had secret contacts with a number of Arab nations, including Saudi Arabia.
In December 2017, Saudi King Salman warned against moving the US Embassy in Israel to Jerusalem before a permanent peace settlement is reached.
He told US President Donald Trump that the embassy's relocation may inflame the feelings of Muslims.
The views and opinions expressed by Anwar Ishqi and Abdel Qader Yasin are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect those of Sputnik.
