MUST-READS

• Saudi-US Defense Pact Faces Netanyahu Obstacle

  To secure the 67 votes in the US Senate to become a binding treaty, as Riyadh insists, it almost certainly needs Saudi Arabia to establish diplomatic relations with Israel. And that in turn requires an end to the Gaza conflict and an Israeli commitment to a Palestinian state.

• Banking Giants Race to Riyadh as MBS Steps Up Pressure Campaign

  The move is intended to lure business from international financial centers like Hong Kong and Singapore and particularly nearby Dubai. And bankers say Saudi pressure to expand on the ground goes beyond the new law: During discussions, senior Saudi officials persistently ask if executives plan to spend more time in the kingdom or expand existing offices, while offering to fast track licenses for those committing to live with their families in Riyadh. Government representatives didn’t respond to a request for comment.

• Opinion: Israel and Saudi Arabia Are Trading Places

  Saudi Arabia and Israel are America’s two most important Middle East allies, and the Biden administration is deeply involved with both today, trying to forge a mutual defense treaty with Saudi Arabia and help Israel in its conflicts with Hamas and Iran. But the Biden team has run into an unprecedented situation with these two longtime partners that is creating a huge opportunity and a huge danger for America. It derives from the contrast in their internal politics.

• Exxon Mobil reaches agreement with FTC, poised to close $60 billion Pioneer deal

  The Federal Trade Commission will wave through Exxon Mobil’s roughly $60 billion acquisition of Pioneer Natural Resources after reaching an agreement with the energy giant, a source familiar with the matter told CNBC. The FTC will not block the deal now that the regulator and Exxon have reached a consent agreement, the source said. The agreement will bar Pioneer’s former CEO Scott Sheffield from joining the Exxon board.

• Blinken says US cannot support Rafah assault without humanitarian plan
  U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Wednesday he has still not seen a plan for Israel's planned offensive on the southern Gaza city of Rafah that would protect civilians, repeating that Washington could not support such an assault.
  Blinken and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met in Jerusalem for two-and-a-half hours, after which Israel repeated that the Rafah operation would go ahead despite the U.S. position and a U.N. warning that it would lead to "tragedy".

• Biden faces tough balancing act as campus protests over Gaza escalate
  Escalating campus protests are forcing U.S. President Joe Biden to walk a careful line of denouncing antisemitism while supporting young Americans' right to protest and trying to limit longer-term political damage.
  As violent police crackdowns and counter-protests greet spreading demonstrations across U.S. campuses, Biden faces sharp criticism of his Israel policy from both the left and right.
  Students at dozens of schools have rallied or camped out in recent days to oppose Israel's war in Gaza, demanding institutions stop doing business with companies that support the war.

• Israeli war cabinet to meet on hostages, Rafah plan on Thursday
  Top Israeli ministers will convene on Thursday to discuss a proposed Gaza truce to free some hostages held by Hamas, as well as prospects for an army sweep of the southern tip of the enclave packed with displaced Palestinians, a government source said.
  Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's war cabinet was provisionally slated to meet at 6.30 pm (1530 GMT), followed by the wider security cabinet, the source said. Israel does not generally publish information on sessions of the two groups.

• Saudi Arabia foregoes April nuclear bid deadline

  The 30 April bid deadline for nuclear technology providers to submit bids for a contract to build Saudi Arabia’s Duwaiheen nuclear power plant project has passed without any clear indication of a new tender closing date, according to two sources familiar with the project. “The understanding is that the tendering process requires a level of [political] stability in the region. This seems like an automatic postponement for the project tendering process,” one of the sources said.

• Six years to go, what Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 aims to achieve

  Various reforms have been implemented to enhance the business climate, create jobs, and invite investment into the country. Under this initiative, Saudi Arabia is preparing its people for a new world that embraces technology and is ready to face issues such as climate change.

• Saudi Arabia balks at Israel normalization, floats ‘modest’ defense pact with US: Report

  “Under that option, the US and Saudi Arabia would sign agreements on a bilateral defense pact, US help in the building of a Saudi civil nuclear energy industry, and high-level sharing in the field of artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies,” the British daily reports.

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