Since the signing of the Abraham Accords brokered by President Trump, Israel has not wasted any time in normalizing diplomatic, trade and societal relations with many Gulf nations such as the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco, Sudan and many more.
As I've discussed in previous pieces, while Israel has enjoyed relations with many of these nations for years, they were always in darkness and behind the scenes.
One of the original signers of the Abraham Accords was the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
In the last 90 days, Israel and the UAE have moved quickly to take their friendships out of the darkness and into the light for the world to see. Tens of thousands of Israelis and Emiratis have been flying between the countries to build trade, business and personal relations. Hundreds of memorandums of understanding (MOU's) and business deals have been signed between the two nations.
Earlier this week, UAE Prime Minister Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum swore in his country's first ambassador to the State of Israel, Mohammad Mahmoud Al Khajah. It's expected that Ambassador Al Khajah will eventually be located in the UAE's Embassy in Tel Aviv.
Weeks before this historic appointment from the UAE's leadership, Israel made history by opening their temporary mission in Abu Dhabi. The temporary mission will be led by Ambassador Eitan Na'eh. Ambassador Na'eh is Israel's former Ambassador to Turkey. Ambassador Na'eh will be focused on jumpstarting trade relations between the UAE and Israel.
I had an opportunity to catch up with Ambassador Na'eh and I asked him what he hopes to achieve in his new role.
He told me through a written statement:
"The reception has been very warm in the UAE. At this stage in the Israel-UAE relationship, the next step is to take the legal actions necessary to sign agreements in all of the agreed areas of cooperation. Once that is done, we can get to work. We will do this by using the great synergies between our two economies and cultures by turning ideas into reality. This will require time so we can learn more about each other. All of our actions are focused on building long-term relations with our Emirati friends."
The immediate results and short-term impact being felt from the Abraham Accords continue to amaze me. I'm confident that relations will continue to grow between the governments of Israel and UAE, but what I think is most important are the personal friendships that are developing between everyday Israelis and Emiratis.
The Abraham Accords are here to stay. President Biden would be wise to continue on this course of peace in the Mideast. These accords and the leaders who signed them have shown the world that peace is possible without wars and bloodshed.
Bryan E. Leib is currently serving as Chairman of HaShevet, a Jewish and Israel advocacy group. Formerly, he served as the National Director for Americans Against Antisemitism and he was the 2018 Republican Endorsed Congressional Candidate for PA-03 (Philadelphia, Pa.). He has served as a Board Member for organizations including: United Way, National Museum of American Jewish History, Jewish National Fund, the Philadelphia Young Republicans and the Camden Youth Soccer Club. He tweets at @Bryan_E_Leib. Read Bryan E. Leib's Reports — More Here.