Gulf reconciliation and Israel lockdown amid vaccination drive
Erel Margalit and Jon Medved discuss hope for region
A momentous week in the Middle East saw several years of tension between Saudi Arabia and Qatar, as well as their allies, end in apparent reconciliation. Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani arrived in Saudi Arabia’s Al-Ula for the Gulf Cooperation Council summit. From January 5 to 7 the leaders of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait and Oman met and signed a joint statement. The summit was chaired by Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, crown prince, deputy prime minister and minister of defence of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
The reconciliation came almost three years after the crisis began when Saudi Arabia led the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt to break relations with Qatar. Kuwait attempted to mediate. The crisis spanned the Middle East, dividing the region. It also took place amid the conflict in Yemen and led to both sides seeking to cultivate closer ties with Washington. Arms sales also increased around the Gulf.
Rabbi Marc Schneier, an adviser to leaders in the Gulf, has said over the past month that he believed there will be more peace deals in the wake of the reconciliation. “The reunification of the GCC will only accelerate the process of normalization between the remaining Gulf states and Israel. With a reunited GCC and the momentum on the side of Gulf-Israel normalization, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman and Kuwait will follow the lead of the UAE and Bahrain," he said.
Read more reports from this week below.
Israel, UAE and Bahrain lead in vaccinations
Israel’s mass vaccine rollout has come as the country enters a tougher lockdown. The lockdown began on January 8 and increased the degree of a lockdown that had already been in place. Meanwhile many Israelis used the new air corridor to the UAE to fly to Dubai, despite new quarantine measures upon their return.
Israel, the UAE and Bahrain lead the world in per capita vaccinations with Israel vaccinating 20 percent of the population by January 8 and the UAE vaccinating roughly ten percent. Bahrain was slightly behind at five percent. Part of Israel’s rapid rollout has involved providing medical data to Pfizer and others as the country in essence is a “world testing laboratory.”
Experts predict high hopes for this year in Israel-Gulf ties
The region will face new challenges and opportunities this year. An Iranian arms drill showcased drones and underground bases for missiles this week. At the same time Iran took control of a South Korean ship, raising tensions in the Gulf. While the last weeks have seen increased activity by US B-52s, a movement off a carrier and submarine, and other sabre-rattling, US politics focused on a domestic crisis this week after protests turned violent in Washington. The Middle East is watching closely appointments by the incoming Biden administration. Former anti-ISIS envoy Brett McGurk was tapped by Biden this week, for instance.
In discussions with experts from Bahrain to the UAE, Israel and the US, it is clear that many have high hopes for this year in Gulf-Israel ties. Besides important events such as the EXPO which was postponed from 2020 to 2021, there are many other milestones that will take place this year. Read the full report on experts weighing in on what comes next here. We surveyed opinion leaders and those who have been most active in supporting the accords. David Weinberg wrote at the Israel Gulf Report on whether the Abraham Accords will expand beyond the initial core countries. Read his piece here.
Israel’s Eitan Na’eh to be Charge d’Affaires in Abu Dhabi
Eitan Na'eh, Israel's former ambassador to Turkey from 2016-2018 will be the charge d'affaires temporarily in Abu Dhabi until a full ambassadorship comes into existence. He will be the head of mission, the mission will become an embassy in the future. He will be the highest level Israeli diplomat posted there. Na'eh was formerly Deputy Head of Mission at the Israel Embassy in London. Israel foresees this as being a major diplomatic post as others take shape in Gulf.
IAI and others Israel defense companies will be at IDEX
IDEX is taking place in Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre - ADNEC in Abu Dhabi from February 21-25, 2021. IDEX describes itself as the "only international defence exhibition and conference in the Middle East and North Africa region demonstrating the latest technology across land, sea and air." ISDEF in Israel is playing a key role in the unprecedented turnout that Israelis will have at the upcoming event. Around 32 companies from Israel appear to be already registered. Read our report here. IDEX will be an important next step for Israeli companies, after the success fo GITEX and also at the Middle East Organic and Natural Products Expo.
Our Crowd’s Jon Medved speaks about the ‘sand curtain’
Our Crowd CEO Jon Medved spoke at the Tel Aviv International Salon in a panel moderated by Arsen Ostrovsky of Sharaka. “[Relations] are in the interests of the United Arab Emirates, Israel, the United States and the entire world. I think we dropped something akin to the Iron Curtain,” Medved said. “We were kept apart by this wall in the middle of the desert - let’s call it a ‘sand curtain.’ There is no going back now, the wall is down.” He was joined by by Dr. Sabah al-Binali, OurCrowd’s GCC Venture Capitalist Partner and Head of the Gulf Region. Read our report by Noa Amouyal here.
Erel Margalit of Jerusalem Venture Partners sees major implications for region
“We did a lot with the community, and we did social initiatives and entrepreneurship,” Erel Marrgalit said this. “The message to our companies was grow and find the opportunity to grow, and you saw the technology that resulted. Israeli hi-tech was so crucial to so many to continue to operate." Margalit is the founder and executive chairman of Jerusalem Venture Partners and the Margalit Startup City. Read his interview here and here.
Matt Churchill on Jerusalem’s diversity
Matt Churchill, a tour guide, writes about things to see and do in Jerusalem and the city’s unique diversity. Read his piece here.
In other news
The president of the Bahrain Journalists Association asked Jewish-American colleagues to support Arab media professionals who are bullied and threatened online for supporting normalization with Israel, the JTA notes.
The UAE reopened air and sea routes to Qatar on January 9.
Sudan quietly joined the Abraham Accords this week. Speculation continues about other peace deals with countries such as Indonesia and Oman.
The number of travelers from Israel to Dubai topped 70,000 in the first month of flights.
Upcoming events include the Jerusalem Post and Khaleej Times partnering on an event on January 13. Flights to Bahrain from Tel Aviv are also supposed to be taking place but the Israeli lockdown appears to have slowed this rollout. Ministerial visits and other high level developments may have also been sidetracked or shifted by Israel’s upcoming elections. Some visits have been postponed.
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