Israel and the UAE reach with Trump's help "historic deal" to normalize relations with Israel "suspending" West Bank annexation plans
[[This article is for the convenience of the members of the International Relations Professional Discussions, as technical problems prevented the display of a usable text. It is not well presented for a standard article. The IRPD multipart post is here: https://tinyurl.com/yxqsbe5s -GRM]
The peace deal was the product of lengthy discussions between Israel, the UAE and the United States that accelerated recently, White House officials said.
The UAE for its part said: "His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, US President Donald J. Trump, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel spoke on Thursday [13 August 2020] and agreed to the full normalization of relations between Israel and the UAE.
"This historic diplomatic breakthrough will advance peace in the Middle East region and is a testament to the bold diplomacy and vision of the three leaders and the courage of the UAE and Israel to chart a new path that will unlock the great potential in the region. All three countries face many common challenges and will mutually benefit from today's historic achievement.
"This historic diplomatic breakthrough will advance peace in the Middle East region and is a testament to the bold diplomacy and vision of the three leaders and the courage of the UAE and Israel to chart a new path that will unlock the great potential in the region. All three countries face many common challenges and will mutually benefit from today's historic achievement.
"Delegations from Israel and the UAE will meet in the coming weeks to sign bilateral agreements regarding investment, tourism, direct flights, security, telecommunications, technology, energy, healthcare, culture, the environment, the establishment of reciprocal embassies, and other areas of mutual benefit. Opening direct ties between two of the Middle East's most dynamic societies and advanced economies will transform the region by spurring economic growth, enhancing technological innovation, and forging closer people-to-people relations.
"As a result of this diplomatic breakthrough and at the request of President Trump with the support of the UAE, Israel will suspend declaring sovereignty over areas outlined in the President's Vision for Peace and focus its efforts now on expanding ties with other countries in the Arab and Muslim world. The US, Israel and the UAE are confident that additional diplomatic breakthroughs with other nations are possible, and will work together to achieve this goal.
"The UAE and Israel will immediately expand and accelerate cooperation regarding the treatment of and the development of a vaccine for the coronavirus. Working together, these efforts will help save Muslim, Jewish, and Christian lives throughout the region. "This normalization of relations and peaceful diplomacy will bring together two of America's most reliable and capable regional partners. Israel and the UAE will join with the US to launch a Strategic Agenda for the Middle East to expand diplomatic, trade, and security cooperation.
"Along with the US, Israel and the UAE share a similar outlook regarding the threats and opportunities in the region, as well as a shared commitment to promoting stability through diplomatic engagement, increased economic integration, and closer security coordination. Today's agreement will lead to better lives for the peoples of the UAE, Israel, and the region.
"The US and Israel recall with gratitude the appearance of the UAE at the White House reception held on January 28, 2020, at which President Trump presented his Vision for Peace, and express their appreciation for UAE's related supportive statements. The parties will continue their efforts in this regard to achieve a just, comprehensive and enduring resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. As set forth in the Vision for Peace, all Muslims who come in peace may visit and pray at the Al Aqsa Mosque, and Jerusalem's other holy sites should remain open for peaceful worshippers of all faiths.
"Prime Minister Netanyahu and Crown Prince Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan express their deep appreciation to President Trump for his dedication to peace in the region and to the pragmatic and unique approach he has taken to achieve it."
Comment: This is indeed a breakthrough, though nothing is signed yet. The statement mentions "suspension", not renunciation to the extension of Israeli sovereignty to the areas concerned. Nothing is said about the fate of existing settlements which remain illegal under international law, notably UNSC 2334. If I understand well, their status from the Israeli point of view will not change, something the Palestinians -who do not seem to have been consulted- will not accept, nor will the majority of states in the region. Any agreement that doesn't involve the Palestinians and maintains Israeli control over the settlements is legally dubious. The UAE is not a party to the conflict. Trump wants to be reelected, Sheikh Mohammed wants Trump to be reelected, Netanyahu is in the midst of a trial and preparing for an inevitable new election.
China?
On a question about China's role raised in a Brookings article (*) I wrote: I believe Netanyahu has given Trump a promise not to sign further trade and investment agreements with China. This will be done through a board to evaluate foreign investments, and its list of concerns issues seems destined to grow ever longer as Israeli commercial interests intertwine with the country’s critical infrastructure and large security industry.
But the reality is that while China has invested in Israel, the latter is the only US ally to sell advanced military ware and military technology to Russia. There is intelligence that some US technology thus "leaked" to Russia. Avigdor Lieberman and his "Russian" Yisrael Beiteinu party have kept close links to Russia.
Israel is the only US ally that has refused to vote UNGA 68/262 which condemns the invasion and annexation of Crimea. Everything has its price.
Israel and Russia have MOUs that allow Israel to intercept arms convoy from Syria to Hezbollah and allow it to strike at Hezbollah and Iranian positions that threaten Israel as in the Golan Heights.
Another MOU allows Israel to attack Iranian formations that are less than 100 km from Israel's border (Israel would like 80km). Trump goes after China but once again says nothing about Russia.
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(*) https://tinyurl.com/yxk9pca4
?
Read also: "Israel-UAE Deal Clears Annexation Muddle. But Not for Everyone As Netanyahu lauds 'historic agreement,' the UAE gets international applause and Trump gets to flaunt a peace deal, the only ones left out are the Palestinians", by Noa Landau in Haaretz https://tinyurl.com/y3f5yrbz
‘A despicable betrayal’: PA blasts Emirates, demands retraction of Israel deal
The Palestinian Authority called today for the United Arab Emirates to “immediately retract” its agreement to take steps towards normalizing relations with Israel, which it called a “despicable decision.” PA President Mahmoud Abbas called an emergency meeting in response to the agreement, while the PA recalled its ambassador to the UAE in protest over the deal.
“The Palestinian leadership rejects the actions of the Emirati government, considering it to be a betrayal of the Palestinian people and Jerusalem and al-Aqsa,” PA spokesperson Nabil Abu Rudeineh said in a statement read aloud on Palestine TV. Abu Rudeineh accused the Emirates of “conducting normalization [with Israel] in the guise of supporting the Palestinian cause.”
Abu Dhabi has sought to portray its action as first and foremost benefiting the Palestinians, as it puts off and possibly cancels Israel’s plans to annex parts of the West Bank.
“The leadership affirms that the UAE, or any other party, has no right to speak on behalf of the Palestinian people, and does not allow anyone to intervene in the Palestinian affairs or speak on their behalf about their legitimate rights in their homeland,” Abu Rudeineh said.
Abbas and Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh spoke over the phone tonight to discuss the UAE-Israel agreement. Israel and the United Arab Emirates announced the agreement this afternoon. ”
UAE officials commenting on the agreement to “establish a roadmap towards launching common cooperation,” as UAE Foreign Minister Anwar Gargash put it, emphasized that it would end Israeli annexation and revive the peace process.
Senior Fatah and Palestinian Liberation Organization officials quickly issued statements condemning the agreement. “Israel got rewarded for not declaring openly what it’s been doing to Palestine illegally & persistently since the beginning of the occupation,” said PLO Executive Committee Member Hanan Ashrawi, who also called the deal a betrayal.
Palestinian terror groups Hamas and Islamic Jihad also denounced the agreement, which was mediated by the United States.
“The US-Israeli-Emirati agreement is dangerous and represents a ‘free reward’ for the Israeli occupation for its crimes and violations of the Palestinian people’s human rights,” said Hamas spokesperson Fawzi Barhoum, who added that the Gaza-based terror group saw the agreement as “a stab in the back of the Palestinian cause.”
Headlines in Palestinian media speculated that the Palestinian leadership had been left entirely in the dark on the looming deal.
The Times of Israel believes there is another matter of concern for Abbas: the potential involvement in the deal of Tanzim leader Mohammad Dahlan, who Abbas sees as a possible challenger for the Palestinian national leadership. Dahlan is backed by the UAE and is based in the Emirates. [He is in charge of the UAE's investments in Serbia and was rewarded with Serbian nationality. -GRM]
“Absolute confusion reigns here,” Palestinian journalist Nassar al-Laham told pro-Hezbollah Al-Mayadeen News from Ramallah.
Still, few Palestinian commentators seemed surprised — after all, Israel’s coordination with Gulf countries has long been well-known. One Palestinian cartoonist showed Israel and the UAE embracing one another under the table, saying that the only difference between today and yesterday was that now they embrace each other over the table. Egyptian President Abd al-Fattah el-Sissi congratulated all parties involved. Egypt and Israel have been at peace since the 1978 Camp David Accords and enjoy a close security relationship.
“I followed with great interest and appreciation the tripartite statement between the United States of America, our brothers [the] United Arab Emirates, and Israel regarding the agreement to stop Israel’s annexation of the Palestinian territories and to take steps to bring peace to the Middle East,” Sissi said. “I value the effort of those embarking upon this agreement for the sake of achieving prosperity and stability for our region.”
Jordan was cooler, with Foreign Minister Ayman al-Safadi making no mention of the agreement on bilateral ties, saying only that “The decision to freeze the annexation of Palestinian lands included in the agreement between the United Arab Emirates and Israel must be followed by Israel, stopping all illegal measures which undermine peace opportunities and its violations of Palestinian rights.
“Israel must immediately enter into direct, serious and effective negotiations to achieve peace based on the two-state solution and in accordance with international law,” Safadi said.
The government of Bahrain welcomed the agreement, which it characterized in a statement as “stopping the annexation of Palestinian lands and advancing the region towards peace.”
While Saudi Arabia has not yet officially commented on the newly announced agreement, Saudi Minister of Information and Culture Adel al-Toraifi said that he believed that the agreement constituted “a historic decision.”
“It’s time for GCC states to move beyond the destructive discourse of false Arab Nationalism and Terrorist Islamists. GCC states should urge Palestinians to drop Hamas’s terrorism & seek a modern state,” al-Toraifi wrote on twitter.
Comment: The Palestinian reaction was to be expected. No one empowered the UAE to negotiate for the Palestinians. Annexation is temporarily suspended but the status of settlements in the occupied territories hasn't changed. Trump's 'Deal of the Century" has empowered Hamas in leaving no alternative to Mahmoud Abbas other than a rapprochement.
Here is the full text of the Joint Statement of the United States, the State of Israel, and the United Arab Emirates (I had posted most of it): https://tinyurl.com/y54tgc77
US envoy to the UN: UAE-Israel deal ‘huge win’ for Trump
The US ambassador to the United Nations says she is celebrating the announcement of diplomatic relations between the United Arab Emirates and Israel, calling it “a huge win” for President Donald Trump and for the world.
Kelly Craft says the diplomatic ties show “just how hungry for peace we all are in this world,” and how Mideast countries are all understanding the need “to stand firm against a regime that is the number one state sponsor of terrorism” — Iran.
Craft says she believes that more of the Middle East will be “joining together,” and pointing to a letter Sunday from the UAE and five other nations in the Gulf Cooperation Council endorsing an extension of the US arms embargo on Iran which is set to expire on Oct. 18. The GCC countries are Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.
“Today’s announcement is just a statement that the Middle East, that the countries are coming together, because they recognize, they understand the importance of restraining this murderous regime,” Craft says.
“I’m celebrating the president’s vision, his strategy. He’s been talking about this, he’s been working behind the scenes on this particular issue, and today it was announced and we’re all celebrating.” - The AP
Comment:Well, I am not. The agreement does "suspend" annexation moves, but it does nothing to advance toward a solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Recall that under international law all settlements are illegal (UNSC 2334) and the two-state solution mandatory (UNSC 1515).