Israel and United Arab Emirates announce rapprochement

Text by: Nicolas Falez Follow

5 mins

Surprise announcement this Thursday, August 13: that of a peace and normalization agreement between Israel and the United Arab Emirates. It was the American administration that unveiled it, promising a “historic” peace agreement between “two great friends” of the United States.

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What exactly do we know about this merger?

The announced agreement and normalization would be the first between Israel and an Arab Gulf monarchy. The American press release says that the two countries have planned to open embassies and that in the next few days they will sign a number of agreements in the areas of security, energy, telecommunications, health, air transport (with the prospect of direct flights between the two countries), the environment of tourism and even culture.

The statement also refers to immediate cooperation between Israel and the United Arab Emirates for research into treatments and a vaccine against the coronavirus.

According to the American press release, as part of this rapprochement, Israel is "suspending" its project to annex occupied Palestinian territories. But according to Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu this is only a "postponement". According to the United Arab Emirates, Israel has indeed given up on this idea, which can very well be claimed as an Emirati diplomatic victory in favor of Palestinian and Arab interests.

Were there any warning signs of this rapprochement?

They have multiplied in recent months, against the backdrop of the Covid pandemic, in particular since last month already an Emirati company and an Israeli announced that they would work together. UAE cargo planes have also been seen landing in Tel Aviv to deliver aid to Palestinians to fight the virus.

More generally, rumors have been fueling the scenario of a rapprochement between the Gulf countries and Israel for several years in the name of the fight against Iran.

What are the interests of this rapprochement for each other?

For Israel, it is about displaying a new peace agreement with the Arab world, after the historic treaties with Egypt and Jordan, in the 1970s and 1990s. Israel has fewer and fewer enemies in the world. Arab world and dreams of a united front against Iran.

It is also the calculation of the United States which wants a rapprochement between its main allies in the Middle East: Israel on the one hand and the Gulf petromonarchies on the other hand, always to weaken the Islamic Republic.

For the United Arab Emirates, this is a new affirmation of the hyper-activity of this country on the international scene. With military operations as in Libya and previously in Yemen, the Emirates want to influence the fate of their region. The Emirates are also increasing the number of technological announcements: in recent weeks they have commissioned the first nuclear power plant in the Arab world and sent a space probe to March. And then this Thursday, geopolitical coup de theater, with the announcement of this agreement with Israel ...

It is easy to see what the Emirates, the Israelis and the Americans are earning. For the Palestinians, on the other hand, the occupied territories remain so and there is no prospect in this announcement regarding their national claim to an independent state.

Does this ad bear the mark of Emirati leader Mohammed bin Zayed ?

For now yes, "MBZ" as it is nicknamed, is only Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Minister of Defense of the United Arab Emirates (a federation of seven emirates including Dubai and Abu Dhabi) but he is the real one. strong man of the country since his brother was no longer able to lead for health reasons.

Mohammed ben Zayed is a soldier, he hates Islamism and lived as a nightmare the Arab uprisings of 2011. This is why the United Arab Emirates supported the coming to power of Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in Egypt, that they fought the rebellion in Yemen within the coalition commanded by Saudi Arabia and that today they militarily support Marshal Haftar in Libya. MBZ is also the architect of the boycott of Qatar. The UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Egypt quartet abruptly broke with Qatar in 2017, deeming Doha too favorable to the Muslim Brotherhood and Iran.

MBZ is very popular in Washington and Paris. He is often seen as the mentor of Mohammed bin Salman, aka MBS, crown prince of powerful Saudi Arabia. The question now is whether the Saudi kingdom can also normalize its relations with Israel, in the name of the fight against the common Iranian enemy.

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