The Israeli and U.S. envoys to the United Nations this week called on the Security Council to refrain from “shrinking” away from the recent U.S.-brokered normalization deals between Israel and three Arab nations, and urged the global body to promote peace in the region by embracing the accords.
In his first address to the Security Council since replacing his predecessor Danny Danon, Israeli envoy Gilad Erdan said on Monday the UNSC should use the Abraham Accords signed between Israel, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and most recently, Sudan, “as a catalyst to promote peace and security in the region.”
“For decades, many in the international community have fixated on a single solution to the conflict. They vote for the same anti-Israel resolutions, recycle old talking points and ignore issues that are crucial for ending the conflict. They also ignore the fact that this approach has only emboldened Palestinian rejectionism,” Erdan said.
U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Kelly Craft said, “History will judge how this council responds to this historic moment – it can either shrink from the challenge or rise to the occasion.”
The Security Council is known for its unrelenting condemnations of Israel, and Monday’s session was no different.
Regarding the normalization deal with Sudan, Erdan noted the Arab League’s famous meeting in the Sudanese capital of Khartoum where it issued its three “nos: No peace with Israel, no recognition of Israel and no negotiations with Israel.”
Sudan has replaced the three “nos” with three yeses, Erdan said.
“Yes to peace with Israel, yes to a new Middle East and yes to a brighter future for our children. Fifty-three years ago, Sudan symbolized the Arab world’s refusal to accept the Jewish state’s legitimacy. Today, it symbolizes the Arab world’s growing acceptance of the Jewish state.”
According to Craft, the Sudan deal was particularly significant because the North African country had provided refuge for terrorist groups including al-Qaeda, Hezbollah, and Hamas. “The conversation in the region is changing. As Sudan’s president said, ‘a new chapter is beginning,’” she said.
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