What is the Israel, UAE deal? Background of the agreement, How other Countries reacted of Israel UAE agreement, who opposed the agreement?

BACKGROUND.

👉As early as 1971, the year in which the UAE became an independent country, the first president of the UAE Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan had said to Israel as "the enemy". In November 2015, Israel announced that it would open a diplomatic office in the UAE, which would be the first time in more than a decade that Israel had an official presence in the Persian Gulf. In August 2019, Israel's foreign minister made a public declaration about military cooperation with the UAE among rising tensions with Iran.

👉In the months leading up to the agreement, Israel had been working in secret with the UAE to fight the COVID-19 pandemic. European news media reported that Mossad had separately attained health equipment from Gulf states. Benjamin Netanyahu, the prime minister of Israel, reported at the end of June 2020 that the two countries were in cooperation to fight the coronavirus and that the head of the Mossad, Yossi Cohen, had traveled many times to the UAE. However, the UAE appeared to downplay this a few hours later by telling that it was only an arrangement among private companies rather than at state level.

👉The move also comes following the end of the Iran nuclear deal by the Trump administration and increased Israeli discussion over the development of an Iranian nuclear program, which Tehran refuses. Currently, Iran supports different argument in representative wars from Syria to Yemen, where the UAE has supported the Saudi-led alliance against the Iran-aligned forces fighting there. In recent years, the countries' informal relations warmed considerably and they engaged in large-scale unofficial cooperation based on their joint opposition to Iran's nuclear program and regional impact.

WHAT IS THE ISRAEL & UAE AGREEMENT?

The agreement is also officially called the "Abraham Accord" in honor of Abraham, the elder of the three major Abrahamic religions of the world—Judaism, Islam and Christianity.

👉The Israel–United Arab Emirates peace agreement, or the Abraham Accord, was agreed to by Israel and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on August 13, 2020. If an agreement is signed, the UAE will be the third Arab country.

At the same time, Israel agreed to suspend plans for the annexation of the West Bank.

WHAT IS THE AGREEMENT?

👉 On August 13, 2020, the UAE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Anwar Gargash, announced the UAE’s agreement to normalize relations with Israel saying that his country wanted to deal with the danger facing the two-state solution, specifically invasion of the Palestinian territories and advicing the Palestinians and Israelis to return to the arranging table. He indicated that he did not think that there will be any embassy in Jerusalem until after there is a final agreement between the Palestinians and the Israelis. 

👉According to U.S. President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, "Israel and the United Arab Emirates will fully normalize their politic relations. They will exchange embassies and ambassadors and begin cooperation across the board and on a broad range of areas including tourism, education, healthcare, trade and security."

👉A joint statement issued by Trump, Netanyahu, and Zayed, read: "This historic diplomatic breakthrough will advance peace in the Middle East region and is a evidence to the bold diplomacy and vision of the three leaders and the courage of the United Arab Emirates and Israel to chart a new path that will unlock the great potential in the region." The UAE said it would continue to support the Palestinian people and that the agreement would maintain the hope of a two-state solution between Israel and Palestine. In spite of the agreement however, Netanyahu stated that Israel's power claim to the Jordan Valley was still on the agenda.

👉Zayed tweeted that "UAE and Israel also agreed to cooperation and setting a roadmap towards establishing a two side relationship."

It is expected that the peace tender will be signed in the White House in early September.

HOW OTHER COUNTRIES REACTED TO THE AGREEMENT?

👉Iran.

Iran's Tasnim News Agency said the Israel–UAE deal was "shameful." The Iranian Foreign Ministry criticized the deal as a "dangerous" knife in the back of Palestinians and Muslims, terming it a "shameful" act of "planned stupidity" by the UAE and Israel that would only serve to strengthen the "line of fight" in the Middle East.

👉Turkey.

The Turkish Foreign Ministry disapprove the agreement, saying history and the people of Middle East would neither forgive nor forget what UAE did, and that it was a neglecting of the 2002 Arab Peace plan.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan later stated that Turkey was thinking cutting off diplomatic relations with UAE in revenge, as well as recalling its ambassador from Abu Dhabi.

👉Middle East

Israel.

Prime Minister Netanyahu said there was "no change" to his plans to invade parts of the West Bank if it was approved by the US, but added they were on short-term hold.

👉Palestinian

Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) official Hanan Ashrawi attacked the agreement, writing on Twitter that "Israel got rewarded for not declaring openly what it's been doing to Palestine illegally and continuously since the beginning of the occupation." Fatah blamed the UAE of "go against its national, religious and humanitarian duties" towards the Palestinian people, while Hamas said it was a "dangerous knife in the back of the Palestinian people" and claimed the agreement was a "free reward" for Israeli "crimes and neglecting against the Palestinian people."

The Palestinian Authority recalled its ambassador from Abu Dhabi.

👉Gulf states

Yousef Al Otaiba, the Emirati ambassador to the United States, issued a statement go on about the agreement as "a win for diplomacy and for the region", adding how it "lowers tensions and creates new energy for positive change".

Bahrain, the first Gulf Arab country to comment publicly on the announcement, congratulated the UAE leadership and welcomed the deal as "steps to increase the chances for Middle East peace". The government of Oman also publicly supported the agreement (which it termed "historic").

👉Egypt.

The Egyptian president Abdel Fattah el-Sisi welcomed the deal, saying that he praises the parties' efforts to "achieve wealth and more secure in our region."

👉United States.

Kelly Craft, the United States Ambassador to the United Nations, celebrated the announcement, calling it "a huge win" for President Trump and for the world, saying that the diplomatic ties show "just how hungry for peace we all are in this world," and how Middle Eastern countries are all understanding the need "to stand firm against a system that is the number one state sponsor of terrorism" .

👉Europe.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson lauded the agreement as a pathway to achieving peace in the Middle East and also praised suspension of invasion of areas in West Bank. British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab and French Foreign Affairs Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian voiced similar feeling, with the former adding that it was time for direct dialogue between Israelis and Palestinians, while the latter stated that it created an opportunity for resuming the talks.

👉United Nations.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres welcomed "any step that can promote peace and security in the Middle East region."