Abraham Accords: A commitment to peace, no promises to Palestinians

Easing concerns for right-wing Israelis, references to eastern Jerusalem, 1967 borders, Judea and Samaria, and a timeline for a Palestinian state were all conspicuously absent.

By Lauren Marcus, World Israel News

The historic Abraham Accords were signed at the White House in Washington, D.C. on Tuesday afternoon, marking the first peace agreements between Israel and Arab states in more than 25 years.

“This is an incredible day for the world,” said President Donald Trump at the beginning of the ceremony.

Israel signed the Abraham Accords peace agreement with the United Arab Emirates and the Kingdom of Bahrain, alongside separate bilateral normalization agreements with the two Gulf States.

The Abraham Accords outlined the three nations’ commitment to “maintaining and strengthening peace in the Middle East and around the world based on mutual understanding and coexistence.”

“We seek to end radicalization and conflict to provide all children a better future,” reads the agreement. “We pursue a vision of peace, security, and prosperity in the Middle East and around the world.”

The bilateral agreements between the UAE and Israel and Bahrain and Israel delve more deeply into the details of cooperation, highlighting collaborative efforts on matters such as “finance and investment, innovation, trade and economic relations, healthcare, science, technology… tourism, culture and sport, and energy, environment, and education.”

Easing concerns for right-wing Israelis, references to eastern Jerusalem, 1967 borders, Judea and Samaria, and a timeline for a Palestinian state were all conspicuously absent from the accords and bilateral peace agreements.

Bahraini Foreign Minister Abdullatif Al Zayani and UAE Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed both mentioned an independent Palestinian state in their speeches before the signing of the agreements.

“A just comprehensive and enduring two-state solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict will be the foundation and the bedrock of such peace,” said Bahraini Foreign Minister Abdullatif Al Zayani.

“This accord will enable us to continue to stand by the Palestinian people and realize their hopes for an independent state within a stable and prosperous region,” UAE Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed said.

But the language within the accords was vague and open-ended. The agreement between the UAE and Israel called for the two countries to continue “their efforts to achieve a just, comprehensive, realistic and enduring solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.”

The agreement between Bahrain and Israel said the countries will continue working to “achieve a just, comprehensive, and enduring resolution of the Israeli- Palestinian conflict.”

While hosting Netanyahu at the White House prior to the signing of the agreements, Trump said other countries in the region would be interested in joining the agreement.

“We’re very far down the road with about five additional countries,” he said. “Frankly, I think we could have had them here today.”

Trump added that the Palestinians “will be a member at the right time… We are talking to the Palestinians. At the right time, they’ll be joining too.”