Former U.S. President Donald Trump has stirred fresh debate in Middle East diplomacy by linking a potential new nuclear agreement with Iran to broader normalization efforts between Muslim-majority countries and Israel.
In a statement on Monday, Trump said that if Iran wants to be part of a new nuclear deal, several key Muslim nations must also take concrete steps toward joining the Abraham Accords and normalizing relations with Israel.
According to Trump, he recently held a phone meeting with the leaders of six Muslim-majority countries — Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Egypt, Pakistan, Turkey, and Jordan — and told them clearly that participation in any future Iran deal should go hand in hand with regional diplomatic normalization.
Leaders from the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain also reportedly joined the discussion. Both countries signed the Abraham Accords in 2020 under U.S. mediation, becoming the first Arab nations in years to formally normalize relations with Israel.
In a Memorial Day post on his social media platform Truth Social, Trump wrote that the United States has worked to solve these complex diplomatic issues together, and therefore all countries involved should join the Abraham Accords simultaneously. However, he added that there could be “one or two exceptions,” while the rest should be prepared to move forward.
The most surprising part of Trump’s proposal came when he suggested that Iran itself could eventually join the Abraham Accords. Given nearly five decades of hostility between Iran and Israel, the statement immediately drew international attention.
“If Iran signs this agreement with me, they would be welcomed as part of this global alliance,” Trump wrote. It remains unclear, however, how Israel would respond to such a proposal.
The Abraham Accords were first signed in September 2020 by the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. Morocco and Sudan later joined the agreement. Since then, the Trump administration has repeatedly tried to bring Saudi Arabia into the framework.
However, Saudi Arabia and several other Arab states have consistently maintained that full diplomatic relations with Israel cannot happen without a credible resolution to the Palestinian issue. Before the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack, Saudi leaders had shown signs of openness toward normalization, but the war in Gaza effectively halted progress.
Meanwhile, a senior Trump administration official claimed that Iran and the United States have already reached agreement on nearly 95 percent of a possible new nuclear deal, and that efforts are underway to create a broader regional peace framework.
Trump also said he has instructed his negotiating team not to rush the talks.
“Either there will be a great deal for everyone, or there will be no deal at all,” Trump said. “And if it fails, we may once again face a much more serious conflict — something nobody wants.”
Trump’s latest position is now fueling intense international discussion, with analysts warning that it could significantly reshape not only U.S.-Iran relations but also the broader diplomatic balance across the Middle East.
