A senior Israeli official traveling with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu blamed the "weakness" of the Biden administration on Saudi Arabia reestablishing relations with Iran.
The deal between Saudi Arabia and Iran, announced Friday, was brokered by China, ending several years of tensions between the Middle East neighbors.
"There was a feeling of U.S. and Israeli weakness, and this is why the Saudis started looking for new avenues. It was clear that this was going to happen," the senior Israeli official, traveling with Netanyahu on a trip to Rome, said Friday, according to Axios.
Regarding the official's comments, a White House National Security Council spokesperson told Axios: "We remain committed to working closely with Israel to jointly address the many challenges and opportunities facing Israel and the Middle East region, including countering threats from Iran."
"There is no greater supporter of Israel's security than President [Joe] Biden," the spokesperson added.
The senior Israeli official claimed the talks between Saudi Arabia and Iran began in 2021 during the tenure of Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid's short-lived unity government in Israel, and when the Biden administration was more committed to reentering the nuclear deal with Tehran.
But Biden moved away from that effort over the past year amid Iran's military cooperation with Russia in Ukraine.
One of Netanyahu's goals after his party returned to power was to normalize relations with Saudi Arabia. The senior Israeli official said the deal between Saudi Arabia and Iran isn't a significant setback.
The official said that what happens on the diplomatic level doesn't reflect what happens under the surface, hinting at efforts between Israel and Saudi Arabia taking place behind the scenes.
"The U.S. and Israeli positions matter more than the agreement between Saudi Arabia and Iran. The Western position toward Iran starts to change, but it still hasn't changed enough," the official said, according to Axios.
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