Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister, Prince Faisal bin Farhan, said on Thursday that only an agreement between the Palestinians and Israelis could deliver lasting peace.

And Prince Faisal praised the Abraham Accord signed by the UAE and Israel for suspending the latter's annexation of large parts of the West Bank and Jordan Valley.

The minister, who is in Washington for the US-Saudi strategic dialogue, spoke candidly about prospects of normalisation between his country and Israel.

“We have always envisioned that normalisation would happen, but we also need to have a Palestinian state and a Palestinian-Israeli peace plan,” Prince Faisal said at an online event hosted by the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.

UAE Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed, US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Oval Office. Courtesy MOFAIC

Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed, UAE Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, met with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and senior Members of Congress. Wam

Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed, UAE Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, met with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and senior Members of Congress. Wam

Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed, UAE Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, met with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and senior Members of Congress. Wam

UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed, right, US President Donald Trump, centre, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during the signing ceremony on the South Lawn of the White House. Courtesy MOFAIC

From left, Bahrain's Foreign Minister Abdullatif Al Zayani, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, US President Donald Trump, and UAE Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed. Courtesy MOFAIC

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, UAE Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed and Bahrain Foreign Minister Abdullatif Al Zayani. Courtesy MOFAIC

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, US President Donald Trump, Bahrain's Foreign Minister Abdullatif Al Zayani, and UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed wave from the Truman Balcony at the White House. AFP

Bahrain Foreign Minister Abdullatif Al Zayani, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, US President Donald Trump, and UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed participate in the signing of the Abraham Accord. AFP

Bahrain's Foreign Minister Abdullatif Al Zayani, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, US President Donald Trump, and UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed after the signing. AFP

Bahrain Foreign Minister Abdullatif Al Zayani, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, US President Donald Trump, and UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed hold up documents as they participate in the signing of the Abraham Accord. AFP

US President Donald Trump watches as UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed speaks from the Truman Balcony at the White House during the signing ceremony of the Abraham Accord. AFP

UAE Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed speaks as President Donald Trump looks on before the signing of Abraham Accord on the South Lawn of the White House. AP Photo

President Donald Trump speaks on the South Lawn of the White House as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed and Bahraini Foreign Minister Abdullatif Al Zayani look on during the signing ceremony of Abraham Accord. AP Photo

UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed, centre, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, left, and Bahraini Foreign Minister Abdullatif Al Zayani stand on the Blue Room Balcony during the signing ceremony. AP Photo

UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed, left, and Bahrain's Foreign Minister Abdullatif Al Zayani shortly before participating in the signing of the Abraham Accord. AFP

UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed, centre, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, right, and Bahrain Foreign Minister Abdullatif Al Zayani pose before they participate in the signing of the Abraham Accord on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington DC. AFP

US President Donald Trump speaks from the Truman Balcony at the White House during the signing ceremony of the Abraham Accord. AFP

President Donald Trump walks to the Abraham Accord signing ceremony at the White House with UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and Bahraini Foreign Minister Abdullatif Al Zayani. AP Photo

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo arrives at the White House to attend the Abraham Accord signing ceremony hosted by President Donald Trump. EPA

UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed meets US President Donald Trump in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington DC, before the signing of Abraham Accord. AFP

UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed met US President Donald Trump, not in picture, at the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC. AFP

UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed meets US President Donald Trump in the Oval Office of the White House. AFP

UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed meets US President Donald Trump in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC. AFP

UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed with by President Donald Trump at the White House. Mustafa Alrawi / The National

UAE delegation led by Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed with US President Donald Trump at the White House. Mustafa Alrawi / The National

US President Donald Trump welcomes UAE Foreign Affairs Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed to the White House in Washington DC. EPA

US President Donald Trump welcomes UAE Foreign Affairs Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed to the White House. AFP

US President Donald Trump welcomes UAE Foreign Affairs Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed to the White House. Reuters

White House Senior Adviser Jared Kushner walks away following a television interview on the North Lawn at the White House in Washington. Reuters

US President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump welcome the arrival of Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu and his wife Sara on the North Lawn of the White House in Washington DC. AFP

A delegation of senior UAE officials led by Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed prepares to depart for the White House to sign the Abraham Accord. Courtesy MFAIC

US President Donald Trump welcomes Bahraini Foreign Minister Abdullatif Al Zayani. AFP

Bahraini Foreign Minister Abdullatif Al Zayani arrives at the White House in Washington DC. AFP

US President Donald Trump welcomes Bahraini Foreign Minister Abdullatif Al Zayani on the North Lawn of the White House in Washington, DC. AFP

Preparations at the White House for the signing of the Abraham Accord. The National

Preparations under way at the White House for the signing of the Abraham Accord. The National

Preparations under way at the White House for the signing of the Abraham Accord. The National

Preparation at the White House for the signing of the Abraham Accord. The National

“We believe that the focus now needs to be on getting the Palestinians and the Israelis back to the negotiating table.

"In the end, the only thing that can deliver lasting peace and lasting stability is an agreement between the Palestinians and the Israelis.”

Without that, he feared a “festering wound” would continue to inhibit regional peace.

On Wednesday, standing alongside Prince Faisal, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo urged Saudi Arabia to normalise relations with Israel.

At the online event, the Saudi royal commended the UAE and Bahrain's announcements of normalisation in September, which he said put annexation "off the table".

“Annexation was a significant threat for peace," he said.

Prince Faisal also said the maximum pressure campaign waged by the US administration on Iran was working, describing Tehran’s influence as “contained and constrained".

“The maximum pressure campaign, while it hasn’t shown a final result, it is working," he said.

"The regime in Iran is less capable of supporting its proxies in Lebanon, Iraq and Syria, and it is certainly showing the pressure domestically."

He urged Iran to return to the negotiating table.

“Our hope is that Iran will sit with the global community led by the US,” Prince Faisal said.

He said any future nuclear deal with Iran would include limits to Tehran's regional behaviour and its ballistic missile programme.

Otherwise it would be similar to that signed by Iran and world powers in 2015, before US President Donald Trump withdrew the US from it in 2018.

“The path of peace is open. It is up to them [Iran] to take it,” Prince Faisal said.

Mr Pompeo on Wednesday said the US was committed to boosting arms sales to Riyadh to deter Iran.

“The United States supports a robust programme of arms sales to Saudi Arabia, a line of effort that helps the kingdom protect its citizens and sustains American jobs," he said.