Israel and UAE reach historic peace deal
Under the agreement, known as Abraham Accords, Israel has agreed to suspend applying sovereignty to areas of the West Bank that it has been discussing annexing.
By Aditi Bhaduri
Israel and the United Arab Emirates reached a historic peace deal on Thursday that will lead to a full normalization of diplomatic relations between the two nations, the Israeli broadsheet Haaretz reported. U.S. President Donald Trump helped broker the agreement.
“HUGE breakthrough today! Historic Peace Agreement between our two GREAT friends, Israel and the United Arab Emirates!” the President tweeted.
Under the agreement, Israel has agreed to suspend applying sovereignty to areas of the West Bank that it has been discussing annexing, senior White House officials told Reuters.
The agreement was apparently sealed in a phone call on Thursday, August 13 between Trump, Netanyahu and Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed, crown prince of Abu Dhabi.
“During a call with President Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu, an agreement was reached to stop further Israeli annexation of Palestinian territories. The UAE and Israel also agreed to cooperation and setting a roadmap towards establishing a bilateral relationship,” tweeted the UAE Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
The agreement, to be known as the Abraham Accords, is the first of its kind since Israel and Jordan signed a peace treaty in 1994. It also gives Trump an enormous foreign policy success as he seeks re-election on Nov. 3.
A joint statement has been issued by Israel, UAE, and the USA in which the three leaders had “agreed to the full normalization of relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates.”
“This historic diplomatic breakthrough will advance peace in the Middle East region and is a testament to the bold diplomacy and vision of the three leaders and the courage of the United Arab Emirates and Israel to chart a new path that will unlock the great potential in the region,” the statement said.
The statement also said that as “a result of this diplomatic breakthrough and at the request of President Trump with the support of the United Arab Emirates, Israel will suspend declaring sovereignty” over areas of the West Bank that were envisioned in the U.S. peace plan unveiled by Trump in January.
The agreement envisions giving Muslims greater access to the Al-Aqsa Mosque in the Old City of Jerusalem by allowing them to fly from Abu Dhabi to Tel Aviv, White House officials told Reuters.
Earlier, the UAE Ambassador to the US had penned an article in the Israeli media calling upon Israel to refrain from implementing the annexation plan.
The deal would mean that like Egypt in 1979 and Jordan in 1994, the UAE has chosen to break rank with the Arab bloc to sign the peace deal with the Jewish state. The unified Arab position till now has been the recognition and establishment of full diplomatic relations with Israel in exchange for the adoption by Israel of the peace plan of 2002 floated by Saudi Arabia.
Reports said that delegations from Israel and the United Arab Emirates will meet in the coming weeks to sign bilateral agreements regarding investment, tourism, direct flights, security, telecommunications and other issues, the statement said.
The UAE has for the past decade been following an increasingly determined and individualized foreign policy.
Arab states, especially those of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) have been increasingly engaging with Israel in the recent past.
Last year, the Gulf state of Bahrain hosted an economic peace plan for the Palestinians which had been floated by Jared Kushner, advisor and sn in law of US President Donald Trump. Israeli delegates and journalists had participated in the forum though the two countries do not have diplomatic relations.
In 2018 Israeli president Benjamin Netanyahu had surprised the world by paying an official visit to Oman, accompanied by a high profile delegation, which included Israel’s National Security Advisor.
White House officials are reported to have said Trump senior adviser Jared Kushner, U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman and Middle East envoy Avi Berkowitz were deeply involved in negotiating the deal, as well as Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and White House national security adviser Robert O’Brien.
