Peace Mediation: US, UAE, and ISRAEL

When we talk about War between Worlds, we don’t only mean Earth and some other alien territory but also regions, states, and countries like Israel and Palestine, Iraq and Iran, Iran and the US, India and Pakistan, Israel and UAE. Although some countries have come to a conclusion, some are at the brink, some have diplomatically continued the war for decades, and yet it is known to many that these countries haven’t been on the same pages for years now. Israel and UAE are middle eastern countries that should have been best partners in trade and everything, but it wasn’t long ago that UAE didn’t even recognize Israel officially, yes, no official recognition was given to one of the most popular estates of the middle east by another famous one, UAE. Up until now, Israel had no relations with any Gulf Arabic country. Immigration and visas were far away dreams. The diplomatic, economic, and international ties between the two started restraining in the year 2010. The situation became grave when the UAE accused the Mossad, i.e. the Israeli national intelligence, of assassinating Mahmoud-Al-Mabhouh. He was the co-founder of the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas. As the situation suggests, he was wanted by the Israeli government for kidnapping and killing two Israeli soldiers back in 1989. Also, he was accused of buying arms from Iran to use in Gaza, which is a self-governing Palestinian territory on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea. However, since 2015, small efforts have been made by both countries to normalize relations by allowing trading, diplomatic activities, and involvement in sports to happen in both the rival states time and again. One thing that kept both the countries on edge was strained ties with Iran. In December 2019, the US mediated a secret trilateral meeting as an effort to restore relations between the two and unite against Iran. While the initiation began back in February only when the two were present at the anti- Iran conference held by the US,  three more meetings took place throughout the year, and then the final result came out late in August 2020. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammad  Bin Zayed Al Nahyan has led discussions to turn into a deal by breaking the ice after a very long time. This is the third peace deal that Israel-Arab has entered since Israel’s independence in 1948, two of them being with Egypt and Jordan. US President Donald Trump has deemed it to be a historical event and has hoped that other Arab and Muslim countries would also follow UAE in bringing peace to the age-old wars. The delegates from both countries will be meeting soon to discuss further steps in making the deal solidly effective. Bilateral ties would be made stronger by agreeing to various models of synchronized efforts in developing both the establishments. The joint statement released related to this said, opening direct ties between the two most dynamic societies would spur economic, technological, and diplomatic growth. It would also bring people closer to work in harmony. The discussions would be about telecommunication, tourism, investment, trade, transportation, healthcare, energy, culture, environment, direct flights, and most importantly visas will be given out to everyone, not just traders and servicemen working on dual citizenship. MIXED RESPONSES Where other parts of the world are supporting the move, the middle eastern parts are quite furious and less content with the deal. Although Oman, Jordan, Bahrain, and Egypt have welcomed the move. Saudi Arabia has been less vocal about it. Iran, Turkey, and Syria have slammed the move. Notably, just a couple of days ago, Jordan’s Crown Prince, Hussein Bin Abdullah sparked controversies when he tweeted an article that surfaced a picture saying, peace deal: breakthrough or betrayal? This suggests a dual stance of the middle eastern nation on the peace accord. India’s MEA (Ministry of External Affairs) has appreciated the move deeming it to be a developmental decision by both the establishments. UK’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson said that suspension of the annexation of the Western Bank has come in order which is the most significant outcome from this. However, the plan of annexation has only been stopped and not suspended. According to the Israeli PM, it is still on the table. Palestine is in shock as it claims to be pushed towards the sidelines once again and deems the deal to be a backstab. POLITICAL GAINS FOR US PRESIDENT AND ISRAELI PM Both Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu have been facing backlash from their own people due to weak responses from both the leaders to what should have been an action-packed strategic approach toward the pandemic. Although Israel is nowhere in the list of countries with maximum cases, the US is topping it with 6 million cases alone. The Israeli PM has been accused of corruption and is being grilled by the government and the people alike. This adds to some positive stances in his favor. Trump, on the other hand, is trying to add some feathers to his diplomatic cap before the November elections. After this move, he would be able to rope in votes from Jews too. PALESTINIAN REACTION According to Palestine, both Uae and Israel have been dealing with the curtains for a long time, and this is just a deceitful act to come in the open all of a sudden. Palestine has also called it back’s ambassador from Abu Dhabi. This suggests that the relations between Israel and Palestine are not getting back on track in the near future.