April 29, 2024 (EIRNS)—U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) is anxious to get bipartisan support for his version of a peace arrangement in Southwest Asia—not turning the deserts green with the fresh water, massive irrigation and nuclear energy of the Oasis Plan, but an expanded military arrangement with Saudi Arabia. According to Graham, that is the secret elixir.
Yesterday, on its Sunday broadcast “CNN State of the Union,” Graham explained that he could get bipartisan support for this. “I don’t think anybody on the Republican side is going to undercut the deal.... If we can get a deal between Saudi Arabia and Israel, it ends the Arab-Israeli conflict, it isolates the Iranians, it creates some hope for the Palestinians, it provides security in a real way to Israel.... Without this deal, there is no solution to the Palestinian problem. Without this deal, everything gets worse. So, let’s get the deal done. We’re running out of time.”
After Graham’s most recent trip last month to Riyadh, he concluded yesterday: “Saudi Arabia wants a mutual-defense agreement with the United States. We’ve been working on this for weeks.” And ahead of this week’s trip to Riyadh by U.S. Secretary of State Tony Blinken, Graham stated: “Tony and Jake [Sullivan], get on with closing the deal on the treaty. Without the treaty, [Saudi Prime Minister Prince Mohammad bin Salman] MBS cannot recognize Israel, and part of the deal will be coming up with a solution to the Palestinian problem.”
