White House adviser Jake Sullivan and Saudi crown prince MBS meet over Gaza crisis

White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan traveled to Saudi Arabia on Wednesday to meet with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, according to two U.S. officials.

The meeting came as the Biden administration works to prevent the Israel-Hamas war from expanding into a broader conflict within the Middle East, said the U.S. officials, both of whom were granted anonymity to speak about the visit. The trip also comes as international ships in the Red Sea have come under increasing attacks by Houthis in nearby Yemen.

The U.S. views Saudi Arabia as a key partner in the region in managing those tensions, and had previously worked with the nation on efforts to broker peace between Israelis and Palestinians, the U.S. officials said.

Saudi Arabia had been in talks to normalize relations with Israel prior to Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack, a process that Biden officials have since said they are eager to eventually resume.

“Before Oct. 7 our team was working very hard on normalization between Israel and Saudi Arabia, which was going to be — we still think there’s hope here — a stepping stone to get closer to a two-state solution,” National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said during Wednesday’s briefing at the White House. “Everybody’s focused rightly on what’s going on in Gaza, but that doesn’t mean we’re giving up on that.”

Sullivan visited Saudi Arabia while en route to Israel, where he is scheduled to meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the Israeli War Cabinet on Thursday and Friday.

Sullivan’s visit with the Saudi crown prince was first reported by Axios.

Alexander Ward contributed to this report.