PUT ON HOLD

Jake Sullivan Postpones Saudi Arabia Trip Over ‘Accident’ That Cracked His Rib

The White House didn’t detail what happened, but said the accident was of Sullivan’s own doing.

The White House has announced that National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan had to postpone a scheduled trip to Saudi Arabia this week because he cracked a rib in a minor accident.

Details on what caused the accident weren’t released, but White House spokesperson John Kirby said Wednesday that the incident was “of his own” doing that affected his ability to travel.

“It was not caused by anybody,” he said. “It was not the result of a nefarious act.”

Sullivan, 47, was slated to meet with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman amid a U.S. push to smooth over relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia—talks that come amid rising regional tensions after a purported Israeli airstrike killed a top Iranian general in Syria this week.

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Kirby said Sullivan is looking forward to rescheduling the trip, but did not provide a date.

There had been plans to host talks to normalize relations between Saudi Arabia and Israel last year, but those plans were thwarted by the Oct. 7 attack in Israel by Hamas. Talks had picked up again in recent months, but a top U.S. official has only been on the ground in Saudi Arabia—Secretary of State Antony Blinken, last month—once since October.

As part of a normalization deal, Reuters reported that Saudi Arabia wants to clinch a mutual defense pact with Washington that’d see the U.S. support its civil nuclear program.

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Josh FialloBreaking News Reporter

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