Foreign ministers from the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco and Egypt will gather in Israel for the first time ever in a historic summit U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Sunday said would have been “unimaginable” a few years ago.
Egypt was the first Arab country to make peace with Israel in 1979, though relations have been lukewarm at best. Since normalizing ties with three of the four other countries in 2020 as part of the Trump-led Abraham Accords, Israel’s relations with its southern neighbor have improved drastically.
It will mark the first time Israel is hosting a summit for top Arab diplomats. Blinken and Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid will join the four Arab diplomats in Sde Boker in the Negev desert and talks will continue on Monday.
The summit “would have been unimaginable just a few years ago. What we’re seeing is normalization becoming the new normal for this region and I think it’s going to attract more and more countries as they see the benefits of these partnerships among so many of the leading countries of the region,” Blinken said at a press briefing with Israeli President Isaac Herzog in Jerusalem.
At an earlier briefing with Lapid and Blinken, the two vowed to work together with Israel to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons, with the American diplomat saying his country and Israel saw “eye to eye” on the matter.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken (L) and Israel’s President Isaac Herzog pose for a photo at the Presidency in Jerusalem, on March 27, 2022. (JACQUELYN MARTIN/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
“Whether there’s a JCPOA or not, Our commitment to the core principle of Iran never acquiring a nuclear weapon is unwavering,” Blinken said.
Lapid was more ambiguous in his remarks.
“We have disagreements about a nuclear agreement and its consequences, but open and honest dialogue is part of the strength of our friendship,” Lapid said.
“Israel will do anything we believe is needed to stop the Iranian nuclear problem program. Anything from our point of view, the Iranian threat is not theoretical, the Iranians wants to destroy Israel. They will not succeed. We will not let them,” he added.
Blinken denounced Tehran’s “destabilizing activities in the region and beyond,” which he noted had increased since the U.S. pulled out of the nuclear deal in 2018.
Blinken hailed the upcoming summit with his Arab counterparts, saying “normalization is becoming the new normal,” before adding the U.S. remains committed to a “negotiated two-state solution” for solving the conflict with the Palestinians.
Blinken is due to meet with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah later on Sunday.
In his opening remarks at the weekly cabinet meeting, Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett also hailed the six-way summit.
“To anyone who has not noticed – Israel’s foreign policy is in a good period,” he said. “Israel is an important actor on the world and regional stage. We are cultivating old ties and building new bridges.”
He added that “the old peace” with Egypt was now conjoining with “the new peace” of the Abraham Accords.
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