For the past few months, President Biden's top foreign policy advisors have been working as intermediaries between Saudi Arabia and Israel. Eventually they want to get the two countries to agree on a deal to finally establish formal diplomatic relations.

It would be a breakthrough for Israel to get that recognition, after decades of Arab hostility stemming from the Israeli Palestinian conflict. Saudi Arabia is home to two of Islam's holiest sites, and it's an oil giant in the region.

But it seems like an almost impossible three-way agreement. So, what's standing in the way?

NPR's Daniel Estrin, who covers Israel, speaks with Felicia Schwartz from the Financial Times, Bader Al Saif, an assistant professor of history at the University of Kuwait, and fellow NPR correspondent Aya Batrawy, who covers Saudi Arabia, to understand what challenges remain for the two countries to normalize relations.

In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.

Email us at [email protected].

Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices

NPR Privacy Policy