US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has called on Saudi Arabia to recognize Israel. During a meeting with Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan in Washington, Mike Pompeo said that the agreements reached between the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain and Israel have played an important role in achieving our common goals for peace and security in the region. Pleased to launch the U.S.-Saudi Strategic Dialogue in Washington with Saudi Foreign Minister @FaisalbinFarhan. We look forward to reinforcing our enduring partnership by expanding our defense and energy cooperation and increasing cultural and educational exchanges. pic.twitter.com/ZMcfAHCZsk — Secretary Pompeo (@SecPompeo) October 14, 2020 The Secretary of State said that this development reflects the rapidly changing situation in the region, in which these countries have recognized the importance of regional cooperation in countering Iranian influence. The US is trying to persuade more Gulf countries to strike similar accords with Israel, as the UAE and Bahrain did at the September 15 ceremony in Washington, DC. Riyadh has quietly acquiesced to the UAE and Bahrain deals – though it has stopped short of endorsing them – and has signalled it is not ready to take action itself. Saudi Arabia, the birthplace of Islam and site of its holiest shrines, drew up a 2002 initiative under which Arab nations offered to normalise ties with Israel in return for a statehood deal with the Palestinians and full Israeli withdrawal from territory captured in 1967. Middle East analysts have raised questions and concerns about the consequences of the Israeli-Arab normalisation in the region.