By Maha El Dahan and Marwa Rashad
DUBAI/RIYADH (Reuters) – While the media and others in the United Arab Emirates have praised the Gulf State agreement to normalize relations with Israel as a diplomatic victory that is helping the Palestinians, silence has reigned in Saudi Arabia, a long-standing figure in regional policy toward Israel.
Analysts see the wonderful agreement between the United Arab Emirates and Israel announced Thursday as a strategic condiment for the UAE’s regional and global position that can put them at the forefront of their tough Saudi neighbor and ally, especially in critical relations with Washington.
Saudi Arabia is the largest economy in the Gulf and the world’s largest oil exporter, yet the United Arab Emirates has been increasingly assertive in recent years in its own foreign policy, especially in regional hot spots such as Libya, Sudan and Yemen.
In July last year, the United Arab Emirates said they were withdrawing their troops from Yemen, where they had jointly led a Western-backed coalition fighting Iran-aligned Houthis since 2015.
The deal was a rare triumph for U.S. President Donald Trump in Middle Eastern international relations before his re-election on November 3. States.
“This resolution will position the United Arab Emirates well if Biden wins, because it will make things better with the (US) Congress and, in doing so, will leave Saudi Arabia beaten and more exposed than ever,” Chatham’s spouse Neil Quilliam said. House and CEO of Azure Strategy.
“This will have to be the genuine fear of Saudi leaders right now, and the most important calculation on how to respond to the decision of the United Arab Emirates and Israel.”
Last year, Congress passed a law blocking the sale of arms to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates in an effort to pressure the Gulf states to cause civilian casualties in Yemen’s war. The law was opposed through President Donald Trump.
Although there has so far been no official comment by the Saudis on the pact between the United Arab Emirates and Israel, Twitter users of the kingdom have shared images of the past King Faisal, who the Arab-Israeli war of October 1973 led an oil embargo aimed at punishing the United States and other countries for their help to Israel.
Users shared a quote from one of Faisal’s speeches: “If all Arabs agree to settle for Israel’s lifestyle and divide Palestine, we will never join them.”
“THE GOLFO IS AGAINST NORMALIZATION”
On Thursday morning, the Arabic hashtag “Gulfis_Against_Normalisation” in the 3rd place in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia, a close best friend of the United States, is led by King Salman, who has been 84 since 2015. He oversaw ambitious adjustments to the house and led through Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, or MbS, as he is widely known, Saudi Arabia. . de facto sovereign and following the throne in line.
Saudi Arabia and Israel see Iran as the greatest risk to the Middle East. Increased tension between Tehran and Riyadh has fueled the hypothesis that non-unusual interests may push the Saudis and Israel to work together, and there have been symptoms in recent years of some thaw between the two.
However, King Salman’s position as custodian of Islam’s holiest sites makes it more difficult for the kingdom to take the same step as the United Arab Emirates as Jerusalem’s prestige remains unresolved and an Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement remains difficult to achieve.
“Doing so would pose a threat to the public at this time of primary economic crisis and give Iran a blessing at such a sensitive time,” Quilliam said.
Palestinians are a state in lands occupied through Israel since the 1967 Middle East War, with East Jerusalem, also captured through Israel as its capital. Israel regards Jerusalem as its eternal and indivisible capital.
Israel agreed with the agreement with the United Arab Emirates to suspend plans to annex parts of the occupied territories, but the Palestinians said they had been blinded by the announcement and rejected it, calling it “treason.”
The agreement between the United Arab Emirates and Israel gave the impression of disagreeing with a 2002 Arab League peace proposal that died for many years, which would have forced Israel to withdraw from all occupied territories in exchange for general relations with Arab states.
White House adviser Jared Kushner on Thursday hinted that other Arab states would follow the path of the United Arab Emirates. Bahrain, a close ally of Saudi Arabia, and Oman, who received Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in 2018, have issued statements about the opening of the UAE to Israel.
There has been no official commentary on Kuwait or Qatar, which has been in politics with the Saudis, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt for 3 years.
“Everyone in the United Arab Emirates is very happy with the decision … The negativity you see only comes from abroad,” said Hassan Sajwani, an Emirati Twitter user who describes himself as an Emirati on existing issues and counter-terrorism. . 60,000 subscribers.
He tweeted an Israel flag with a downtown emoji and wrote “Visit Israel.”
(Information through Maha El Dahan and Marwa Rashad with more reports through Dahlia Nehme; written through Lisa Barrington and Maha El Dahan; edited through Mark Heinrich)