Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave a press conference in Jerusalem on Monday as part of the U.S. top diplomat’s five-day visit to the region.
Photo: debbie hill/Agence France-Presse/Getty ImagesTEL AVIV—Secretary of State Mike Pompeo urged Arab countries to join the United Arab Emirates in forging formal ties with Israel, as part of a U.S. diplomatic push to align old enemies in the Middle East against a common rival in Iran.
“I am very hopeful we will see other Arab nations join in this…to recognize the state of Israel and to work alongside them will not only increase Middle East stability but improve the lives for the people of their own countries as well,” Mr. Pompeo said in Jerusalem on Monday, speaking alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Earlier this month, the U.A.E. became the first Gulf Arab state to say it would normalize diplomatic relations with Israel. Arab nations have historically refused to establish formal ties with Israel absent a resolution to its conflict with the Palestinians. But a variety of factors, from security to commercial issues, have brought the sides closer together.
The chief diplomat’s five-day visit to the region, with scheduled stops in the U.A.E., Bahrain and Sudan, is the start of a push to encourage other countries to join the U.A.E. Jared Kushner, President Trump’s senior adviser, will travel to Israel, the U.A.E., Oman, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain next week as part of the effort.
U.S. officials said they hope to announce at least one more deal between Israel and an Arab country—possibly Bahrain, Oman or Sudan—in the coming weeks.
The deal between Israel and the U.A.E. drew a mixed response from other Arab states, with many governments hailing Israel’s suspension of its plans to annex parts of the occupied West Bank as part of the deal, but cautioning that peace is impossible without an independent Palestinian state. Iran and Turkey, which has diplomatic relations with Israel, denounced the deal as a betrayal of the Palestinian cause, an emotive issue for Muslims in the region and beyond.
In a sign of the sensitivities involved, a foreign ministry spokesman in Sudan was fired last week after he indicated the possibility of establishing diplomatic relations with Israel, state news agency SUNA reported.
Saudi Arabia, which sees itself as the leader of the Muslim world and has long championed the Palestinian cause, remained silent for nearly a week following the announcement, while Mr. Trump said he expected Riyadh to join the deal.
Last week, Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan reaffirmed the kingdom’s longstanding position that normalization would only follow the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital. “That said, any efforts that promote peace in the region and that result in holding back the threat of annexation could be viewed as positive,” he told a news conference in Berlin with his German counterpart.
The next day, Prince Turki al-Faisal, a former Saudi ambassador to Washington who remains close to the kingdom’s leadership, penned an op-ed in pan-Arab daily Alsharq Alawsat advising any Arab states that are considering following the U.A.E.’s lead to demand a high price in return.
While the deal has been popular in Israel, members of the security establishment have raised concerns about the U.A.E.’s ability to access advanced military hardware as a result of the accord.
The U.A.E. says it expects its requests for F-35 stealth fighters to be granted now that it is forging peace with Israel. The U.A.E. first requested the jets six years ago, but the Obama administration opposed the sale because of its commitment to Israel’s military superiority in the region.
Mr. Pompeo said the U.S. is committed to preserving what is known as Israel’s “qualitative military edge,” but that Washington is reviewing the U.A.E.’s request for F-35s and other advanced military hardware.
Israel says it is opposed to such a sale, a position Mr. Netanyahu reiterated Monday.
Mr. Pompeo met with Mr. Netanyahu first and later with Defense Minister Benny Gantz and Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi. In addition to the normalization push, they are discussing Iran, with both Israel and the U.S. concerned about the October expiration of a conventional arms embargo on Tehran, which was time limited by the 2015 nuclear deal.
“When Arabs and Israelis agree on something, it makes sense to pay attention,” Mr. Netanyahu said, citing Arab states’ support for a U.S. push to reimpose sanctions on Iran.
Mr. Pompeo will take a break in his diplomatic duties to record an address to the Republican National Convention from Jerusalem, in an apparent nod to the Trump administration’s efforts to court evangelical voters ahead of the November election. It is highly unusual for a sitting secretary of state to give a political speech, especially while on a diplomatic mission overseas. The State Department said it won’t bear any costs in connection with his appearance and isn’t involved in it.
The mixing of politics and policy received criticism from former diplomats who said making a campaign speech while on official business was inappropriate. Some in Israel worried it could add to tensions between Democrats and the Israeli government, which have deteriorated sharply since Mr. Netanyahu opposed the Iran nuclear deal.
—Stephen Kalin in Riyadh contributed to this article.
Write to Felicia Schwartz at Felicia.Schwartz@wsj.com
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