ShareABU DHABI: President of the Zionist entity Isaac Herzog started his first visit to the United Arab Emirates yesterday, the latest high-profile diplomatic trip since the countries normalized ties. It follows a visit by Naftali Bennett last month, the first by a Zionist premier, during which both sides are understood to have discussed Iran’s nuclear program, a top Zionist security concern.
Herzog, travelling with the first lady, arrived around 0800 GMT in the UAE capital, where he met with Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, the president’s office said. The visit comes some 16 months after the wealthy Gulf country forged diplomatic ties with the Zionist entity, becoming the third Arab nation to do so after Egypt and Jordan.
Herzog also met with Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan at the presidential palace, the official Emirati news agency WAM said. “The national anthems of the two countries were played, while 21 rounds of artillery were fired to welcome his visit,” it reported. Sheikh Mohammed expressed hope that the visit would enhance bilateral relations, WAM said, adding that the pair discussed cooperation in fields including the economy, trade, investment, development, technology and health.
The president’s office said the meeting lasted for over two hours. “We completely support your security requirements and we condemn in all forms and language any attack on your sovereignty by terrorist groups,” Herzog’s office quoted him as saying during the meeting. “We are here together to find ways and means to bring full security to people who seek peace in our region,” he added.
Herzog was later due to meet the UAE prime minister and ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum, during the two-day trip. Herzog, whose position is largely ceremonial, is the first Zionist head of state to officially visit the UAE. The UAE-Zionist normalization deal was part of a series of US-brokered agreements known as the Abraham Accords, pacts that have angered the Palestinians.
The deals broke with decades of Arab League consensus against recognizing the Zionist entity until it signs a peace agreement establishing a Palestinian state with a capital in east Jerusalem. They were negotiated by Bennett’s predecessor, Benjamin Netanyahu, who said they would offer the Zionist entity new regional allies against Iran and bolster its diplomatic efforts to stop Tehran from acquiring nuclear weapons.
The UAE meanwhile has strained relations with Iran, backing government-aligned forces fighting the Tehran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen’s civil war. That conflict has become increasingly regional, with Abu Dhabi hit this month by a Houthi missile and drone attack that killed three foreign workers — the first deadly assault on UAE soil acknowledged by the Emiratis and claimed by the Houthis.
Herzog, who was also set to visit Expo 2020 Dubai and to meet members of the Jewish community, vowed this month that “the bold new partnership” between the Zionist entity and the UAE “will transform the Middle East”. About 200,000 Zionists visited the UAE in the first 12 months after the normalization deal was signed, and about 40 Zionist businesses have set up there, the Zionist entity’s Dubai consulate has said.
Since normalization, the Zionist entity and the UAE have inked a series of deals on economic and trade cooperation, ranging from tourism to financial services. More are in the pipeline. The Emirati ambassador in the Zionist entity, Mohamed Al-Khaja, said ahead of Herzog’s trip that it would “enhance the bilateral relations... as we aim to sign important economic and trade agreements ... in the near future”.
The Abraham Accords were negotiated under former US president Donald Trump and endorsed by President Joe Biden’s administration. Bahrain and Morocco have also normalized ties with the Zionist entity under the accords. Sudan has agreed to do so, but formal diplomatic relations have not emerged so far amid escalating instability in Khartoum. – AFP
