IAS Gyan

Daily News Analysis

US President Trump says UAE to open diplomatic ties with Israel  

14th August, 2020 International Relations

Context: United Arab Emirates and Israel have agreed to establish full diplomatic ties as part of a deal to halt the annexation of occupied land sought by the Palestinians for their future state.

 

Stand of various countries:

  • The announcement makes the UAE the first Gulf Arab state to do so and only the third Arab nation to have active diplomatic ties to Israel.
  • For Israel, the announcement comes after years of boasting by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that his government enjoys closer ties to Arab nations than publicly acknowledged.
  • For the UAE, it further burnishes its international campaign to be seen as a beacon of tolerance in the Middle East despite being governed by autocratic rulers.
  • It also puts the UAE out first in a regional recognition race among neighboring Gulf Arab states.
  • And for the Palestinians, who long have relied on Arab backing in their struggle for independence, the announcement marked both a win and setback.

 

Relation of Arab countries with Israel:

  • Among Arab nations, only Egypt and Jordan have active diplomatic ties with Israel.
  • Egypt made a peace deal with Israel in 1979, followed by Jordan in 1994.
  • Mauritania recognized Israel in 1999, but later ended relations in 2009 over Israel's war in Gaza at the time.

 

UAE relation with Israel:

  • The UAE is a US-allied federation of seven sheikhdoms on the Arabian Peninsula. Formed in 1971, the country like other Arab nations at the time did not recognize Israel over its occupation of land home to the Palestinians.
  • The UAE relied on white-collar Palestinians in creating its nation. Over time, it maintained its stance that Israel allows the creation of a Palestinian state on land it seized in the 1967 war.
  • But in recent years, ties between Gulf Arab nations and Israel have quietly grown, in part over their shared enmity of Iran and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.
  • Prince Mohammed also shares Israel’s distrust of Islamist groups like the Muslim Brotherhood and the militant group Hamas that holds the Gaza Strip.

 

Reference:

https://indianexpress.com/article/world/live-updates-us-president-trump-says-uae-to-open-diplomatic-ties-with-israel-6553428/