Today, Tuesday morning, a delegation that includes businessmen and heads of leading banks in Israel went to Abu Dhabi, in an effort to conclude a number of agreements related to the financial and commercial side between Israel and the UAE, within the framework of the normalization agreement between the two parties.
The delegation will discuss issues related to financial transactions, opening offices for Israeli banks in Abu Dhabi, and activating Israeli bank credit cards for use in the UAE.
Informed sources reported that an Emirati delegation that includes politicians and businessmen will arrive in Israel on the 22nd of this month, at a time when many sources have suggested that the normalization agreement will be signed at the White House next week or no later than the end of this month.
On Sunday, Reuters reported that the Israeli heads of Bank Hapoalim and Leumi will travel to the UAE, the first such visit since the two countries agreed to normalize relations between them.
The agency quoted Dov Kotler, CEO of Bank Hapoalim, describing the visit as "a unique opportunity to establish economic relations and cooperation between our two countries and their financial systems, which will achieve economic growth for both sides," adding that there is an "urgent bilateral desire" to establish strong economic relations.
It is noteworthy that Israeli Intelligence Minister Eli Cohen said yesterday to the Israeli "Reshet Bet" radio that the volume of trade between Israel and the UAE will reach 4 billion dollars within 3 to 5 years, after the announcement of the normalization of relations between the two countries last August.
Since then, the UAE has canceled the economic boycott of Israel, and officials from the two countries have said that they are studying cooperation in the fields of defense, energy, medicine, tourism, technology and financial investment, and several Israeli and Emirati companies have signed agreements since the announcement of normalization.