Katz showed a map of a hoped-for rail network stretching through Jordan and Saudi Arabia to the Gulf. Israel is already pushing forward with plans to extend an existing train line to the Jordanian border and into the West Bank, he said, adding that the project would give Jordan and the Palestinians greater access to Israel's Haifa port.

Israel does not have diplomatic relations with Saudi Arabia, but Katz said the topic has been quietly raised through back channels. He says the new US administration is "very active" in promoting regional "normalization."