NEW YORK, 24 September 2020, (TON): All hopes of Riyadh following the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain in normalizing relations with Israel faded away at UN headquarters.

It was shocking for many enemies and adversaries of Saudi Arabia, when King Salman of Saudi Arabia, seen on a video screen addressing the 75th session of the U.N. General Assembly on 23 September at UN headquarters, did not give any signal of following the path of UAE with regard to peace with Israel.

King Salman bin Abdulaziz told the virtual forum in a videotaped message. “We will spare no effort to work together towards achieving a bright future where peace, stability, prosperity and co-existence among all the region’s peoples prevails.” He said, “Peace in the Middle East is our strategic option.”

Over the issue with Iran, the Saudi King said that his government has extended its hand in peace to the majority Tehran in the past but there were no results. He highlighted that the Houthi rebels in Yemen launched more than 300 ballistic missiles and over 400 armed drones into Saudi territory since the start of the conflict. He also criticized Tehran for exploiting the 2015 nuclear deal to fuel its expansionist projects in the region. However, Iran’s U.N. mission spokesperson, Alireza Miryousefi, rejected Saudi Arabian claim and termed it as "baseless allegations.”