Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett (L) is received by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan (R) of Abu Dhabi in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates on December 12, 2021.
Israeli Government Press Office (GPO) | Handout | Anadolu Agency via Getty Images
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates – Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett met in the United Arab Emirates on Monday for a historic visit, marking the first time an Israeli leader has publicly met. de facto ruler of the UAE, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
Bennett took the opportunity to highlight what he had seen and indeed what regional analysts describe as a new reality for the Middle East: “In my opinion, this is what peace and reality is all about. new that the region is witnessing, and we are working together to ensure a better future for our children,” he told UAE state news agency WAM.
Late Monday, Bennett’s office announced that Mohammed bin Zayed had accepted the Israeli leader’s invitation to visit Israel. The date of that visit has yet to be determined.
The UAE and Israel signed the historic Abraham Agreement in August 2020, brokered by the Trump administration and marked the first normalization of relations between Israel and an Arab Gulf state. Bahrain, Sudan and Morocco subsequently made their own normalization arrangements with Israel.
Despite some criticism from other parts of the Arab world, Israel and the UAE have taken the lead with a multibillion-dollar trade, tourism, technology and transportation partnership. Within months of the agreement’s signing, Israeli tourists flocked to the UAE’s restaurants, beaches and malls. December sees outdoor Hannukah ceremonies held in Dubai, something unthinkable just two years ago.
An Israeli tourist wears a mask in Dubai’s historic al-Fahidi neighborhood on January 11, 2021. As many parts of the world tighten lockdowns amid the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, Dubai remains open For tourism, self-branded as a sunny, warm region with no escape quarantine – despite the sharp increase in cases.
KARIM SAHIB | AFP via Getty Images
Bennett said of the agreements, “The relationship between the two countries has strengthened in all areas and I am very pleased with that, as many cooperation agreements have been signed in the fields of trade, research and development. and development, cybersecurity, healthcare, education, aviation and more, and I look forward to the relationships continuing to grow and strengthen.”
The strengthening relationship between the UAE and Israel benefits both countries when it comes to defense strategies in the face of their common adversary, Iran. However, this week’s meeting is more important in promoting Bennett’s image domestically, said Taufiq Rahim, senior fellow of the international security program in New America.
“This visit is a year old and in some respects long overdue. The relationship between the two countries has accelerated significantly. This meeting will have more impact on Israel than Prime Minister Bennett’s position. than any new strategic shift in the region.”
Increase stakes with Iran
The meeting comes amid rising tensions in the region between Iran and its rivals, as Tehran pushes ahead with its nuclear development while engaging in talks with Western powers to try to restore the deal. nuclear 2015.
Known officially as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, the Obama-era agreement to lift economic sanctions on Iran in exchange for limits on the country’s nuclear program has been violated. significantly on both sides since former President Donald Trump pulled the United States out of its nuclear program in 2018 and reimposed painful sanctions on Iran. Israel has long opposed a return to the agreement.
In addition to further promoting bilateral cooperation with the UAE, the timing of Bennett’s visit was linked to “the stalemate in the JCPOA negotiations that are increasing the risk of conflict with Iran”, said Samuel Ramani, industry assistant professor International Relations at Oxford University said. . “The Iran threat was the main driver of informal cooperation between Israel and the UAE a decade ago, and Israel will want to ensure that it remains an area of cooperation at this perilous time.”
Meanwhile, the Gulf’s most powerful states – Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) – have made gestures of cooperative relations with Tehran. Saudi officials have engaged in direct talks with Iran to ease tensions, though no breakthrough is expected yet. News about the negotiations were welcomed by the Biden administration. And in early December, the UAE’s top national security adviser, Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan Tahnoon, brother of Mohammed bin Zayed, visited Iran with the aim of improving bilateral relations.
