White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan has postponed plans to travel to Saudi Arabia this week as he recovers from a cracked rib following a minor accident, the White House said on Wednesday.
Sullivan had been due to hold talks with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman amid a US push for progress toward normalizing relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia.
The injury "has affected his ability to travel," White House spokesperson John Kirby told reporters. "This was a minor accident of his own. It was not caused by anybody. It was not the result of a nefarious act."
Kirby said Sullivan looked forward to rescheduling the trip but did not provide a date.
Talks on normalization had been put on ice in the immediate aftermath of the October 7 attack by Palestinian Hamas fighters on southern Israel and Israel's subsequent assault on Hamas-ruled Gaza, but conversations have resumed in recent months.
As part of a normalization deal, Saudi Arabia wants to clinch a mutual defense pact with Washington and get US support for its civil nuclear program.