Israel intends to propose to the United Arab Emirates the construction of a land corridor linking it with the Arab Gulf states, including Saudi Arabia, according to an Israeli newspaper.
The private Israeli newspaper, Globes, specializing in economic affairs, said on its website yesterday, Wednesday, that Tel Aviv would offer Abu Dhabi to build a land corridor linking Israel and the Gulf countries, to be a link for transporting Gulf oil and gas to European and North American countries.
The newspaper indicated that Saudi Arabia will have a station to annex the corridor, despite the absence of overt diplomatic relations between it and Israel.
The newspaper pointed out that the transportation of oil and natural gas will be via pipelines from the Gulf countries to the city of Eilat (southern Israel), and then to the city of Ashkelon (southwest of Israel) for transport to Europe and North America.
Globus noted that the normalization agreement between Israel and the UAE, on Wednesday, contained an implicit reference to the project, as the agreement stipulated an article saying that the parties would enhance and develop cooperation in projects in the energy field, including regional transport systems, with the aim of increasing energy security.
She explained that the project aims to reduce the time for transporting oil, natural gas and distillates from Saudi Arabia and the Gulf states to the West, and will also provide for the payment of fees for transit ships in the Egyptian Suez Canal.
According to estimates heard in discussions about the project, it would generate hundreds of millions of shekels (a dollar equivalent to 3.42 shekels) annually for the Israeli government, according to Globus.
According to the Israeli newspaper, for the Gulf states, the project has a strategic advantage, as the establishment of a land road will make it possible to reduce the use of the dangerous sea route to export oil to the West, due to the Iranian and Yemeni presence in the Strait of Hormuz, in addition to the risk of pirate attacks from Somalia in the entrance to the sea. the Red.
And yesterday, Wednesday, the Israeli companies Dovertower and the UAE's Dubai Ports World (DP World) said they had signed agreements to cooperate in shipping and port activities.
Dovertour said yesterday that it will also partner with "Dubai Ports" to establish a direct sea shipping line between Dubai and Eilat.
On Tuesday, the UAE and Bahrain signed two agreements for normalization with Israel, an event that US President Donald Trump described as historic, despite the widespread Palestinian rejection and condemnation of him officially and publicly.
As for Saudi Arabia, it does not have public relations with Israel, as its Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan stated on August 20 that his country will not normalize its relations with Israel like the Emirates, unless a peace agreement is reached between the Israelis and the Palestinians.