US President Joe Biden didn't get much from his recent trip to Saudi Arabia — other than some symbolic progress on Saudi ties with Israel.
Indeed, Biden's plane flew directly to the country from Israel, and now Israeli airlines will be allowed to overfly Saudi airspace. But is this really a big deal?
"I would describe it as [...] giving crumbs to Biden," Bernard Haykel, a Princeton University professor and expert on Saudi Arabia, tells Ian Bremmer on GZERO World.
What would make a difference is normalizing ties with Israel — which the Saudis are not yet ready for. Haykel believes the Saudi public won't accept such a move until "something is given to the Palestinians."
Still, he expects the Israel-Saudi relationship to continue warming because, hello, Iran.
Watch the GZERO World episode: Saudi Arabia’s repressive power politics
- Prepping for a fight in the Middle East - GZERO Media ›
- Biden-MBS meeting was "total win" for Saudis, says expert - GZERO ... ›
- Crow on the menu during Biden's trip to Saudi Arabia - GZERO Media ›
- Déjà vu in Israel: Another government crumbles - GZERO Media ›
- Israel-UAE relations & the Abraham Accords are not at risk under ... ›