United Arab Emirates – Various Arab Gulf nations are reportedly prepared to improve ties with Israel if Jerusalem takes what they deem as significant efforts to relaunch the stagnate peace process with the Palestinians, The Wall Street Journal on Monday cited sources close to the matter as saying.
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As part of the normalization process, the Gulf states would reportedly be willing to set up telecommunication lines between the countries, allow for Israeli businesses to trade with their Arab counterparts and allow for Israeli planes to fly over their airspace. In return, Israel would have to freeze settlement construction and relax trade restrictions with the Gaza Strip.
The report emerged a week before US President Donald Trump is due to make his first visit to the region. Trump’s first foreign trip as president will include stops in Saudi Arabia, Israel and the Vatican.
Trump was due to convene Arab world leaders from across the region alongside Saudi royal family members in Riyadh. In Jerusalem, the president was expected to offer details for the first time on his vision for a comprehensive Israeli-Palestinian peace. He will then go on to meet Pope Francis at the Vatican.
In late March, sources told The Jerusalem Post that members of the Trump administration are exploring whether to host a landmark conference over the summer that would bring Gulf Arab leaders, the Palestinian Authority president and Israel’s prime minister onto the same stage for the first time.
No event has been formally planned, and additional sources from both Israel and the US deny that a summit is the purpose of a recent flurry of American diplomatic activity in the region. But several discussed the idea as a concrete goal of an administration seeking a momentous foreign policy victory.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in recent months has alluded to the normalization of ties with moderate Arab states in the region.
In March, he spoke of the threat that Iran poses to the region, asserting that efforts to counter Tehran could open doors for Israel to establish relations with more Arab countries other than Egypt and Jordan, with which Jerusalem already has ties.
“I believe in nurturing these interests,” he said. “In my opinion, if we act wisely, it could assist us normalizing ties with countries in the region and opening new diplomatic streams – that could be more efficient – between us and the Palestinians.”
BiBi, just say ” NO “
I would be a grave mistake to pay attention to messages like this, whether from Arab states or from Democrats who subscribe to tacit support of terror. Israel has made more concessions than any other country in world history, and it is plainly immoral to demand anything further from them. In stark contrast, the Palestinians and their various gangs of terror have not made a single concession. They never renounced terror, they never stopped inciting and supporting it, and they have never stopped their mission to erase Israel from the world map. They intentionally lie to the world, saying “moderate” things to the world, while they speak to their own people with messages and missions of hate, murder, and terror. I would never engage in a dialogue that includes demands for concessions from Israel.
Certainly a starting point for talks.
Arab peace process: 1. Give us land 2. We will kill you as per our Charter. 3 Go to point 1.
The arabs are notorious liars and shouldn’t be believed .The have no concept of ‘peace’ just an interruption of hostilities between battles.
Peace in exchange for Peace. Arabs need ties with Israel more than Israel needs them.
Israel should offer Arabs improved ties with them in exchange for their piece concessions!
Do Arabs really think that Jews are stupid?
They want “freeze settlement construction” – in other words, start accepting and preparing for a totally independent Palestinian state, that will be able to arm itself, that will eventually have the ability to inflict serious damage to Israel;
…”and relax trade restrictions with the Gaza Strip” – allow for weapons to come into this terrorist state, so the destruction of Israel is expedited.
No, thanks. Just say, we will make total peace with Israel if Israel allows a demilitarized Palestinian state…where all the citizenship of Palestinians will be moved to that State and the ones of “settlers” will be only with Israel.