'Made for Trade Live' comes to Tel Aviv
As Israel-UAE ties enter their third year, and the Abraham Accords are thriving, trade is still the talk of the town
A unique event took place in Tel Aviv on November 29. The Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC) brought its ‘Made for Trade Live’ event was hosted at the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange conference center. The event included a variety of important speeches by key players in the trade scene.
DMCC is a leading trade hub for commodities such as diamonds, gold, coffee, tea and agri-food and is based in Dubai. It “is home to 21,000 companies ranging from multinational corporations to start-ups and is already home to many Israeli companies who have opened offices in the Dubai,” according to a statement about the event. According to DMCC, it “hosted its first ever physical Made For Trade Live roadshow event in Tel Aviv, Israel, as it targets attracting more Israeli companies to Dubai following the UAE-Israel Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement signed earlier this year.”
Ahmed Bin Sulayem, Executive Chairman and CEO of the DMCC talked about his experiences before and after the Abraham Accords and how enthusiastic he has been for developing trade with Israel. You can read more about the event and the speeches at The Jerusalem Post.
Trade is growing between Israel and the UAE and is expected to almost double last year’s total. The first six months of 2022 saw $1.4 billion in trade. The event in Tel Aviv touched on important commodities, such as diamonds and other precious stones; as well as trade in coffee and innovations that DMCC is looking to do with its upcoming Water Centre.
According to DMCC, the event saw “over 250 Israeli business leaders and entrepreneurs briefed on the ease of doing business in Dubai and how the emirate acts as a gateway to some of the world’s fastest growing markets.” The bustling conference rooms were evidence of this, with a buzz as people mingled and met eachother.
Mohamed Al Khaja, Ambassador of the United Arab Emirates to Israel, said that “the UAE and Israel are on a journey of growth together - from both a cultural and economic perspective. Events such as this are key to further deepening our relationship and unlocking the full potential of our partnership, enabling our two countries to thrive for generations to come.” Others who attended included Ohad Cohen, Israel’s trade commissioner of the Foreign Trade Administration at the Economy Ministry, Uriel Lynn, president of the Federation of Israeli Chambers of Commerce,Boaz Moldawksy, president of the Israel Diamond Exchange. “Promoting innovation in the region as a way to drive business growth and impact is our core goal. Seeing DMCC align with this mission so clearly is why we’re proud to support their first physical event in Tel Aviv,” said Yariv Becher, VP Innovation Diplomacy at Start-Up Nation Central, according to a statement DMCC distributed.
A LOT IS happening as the Abraham Accords enter their third year. It was back in September 2020 when the Accords were signed and since then Israel, the UAE, Bahrain, Morocco and many other countries have made huge strides. There is the Negev Summit format that includes Israel, Egypt, the UAE, Bahrain, Morocco and Jordan and the next event is supposed to be in Morocco.
There is also the I2U2 grouping of India-Israel-UAE-US. After the first meeting of this group, the White House noted “we intend to mobilize private sector capital and expertise to modernize infrastructure, advance low carbon development pathways for our industries, improve public health and access to vaccines, advance physical connectivity between countries in the Middle East region, jointly create new solutions for waste treatment, explore joint financing opportunities, connect our startups to I2U2 investments, and promote the development of critical emerging and green technologies, all while ensuring near- and long-term food and energy security.”
As mentioned at the ‘Made for Trade Live’ event, there is also progress on trade deals between Israel and Bahrain and Morocco and Israel. Israel and the UAE have a free historic free trade deal and you can read more about it here.
As the Abraham Accords celebrated two years of success there are also concerns. There is a new Israeli government being formed and it’s worth reading David Weinberg’s recent column looking at the challenges ahead. Read it here.
Other reports look at the success that is happening Israel HaYom noted recently that “The UAE-Israel Business Council, the leading group that builds ties promoting trade, innovation, and cooperation, is joining with FemForward, Israel's unique three-month junior-to-manager program designed to support women in advancing their careers in the tech sector," a statement published by the two organizations read.
An article at Globes recently noted the following; “Oren Cohen, head of Bank Hapoalim’s Corporate Banking division, sees the accords as ‘much more than a bilateral deal.’ He said that they had advanced the economy of the region, and had helped in creating warmer economic ties with Egypt. This, he said, was manifest in the memorandum of understanding on the export of Israeli gas to Europe via Egypt, in the expansion of gas sales to Jordan, in US involvement in the Middle East, and even in the maritime border agreement with Lebanon.”
On security and defense issues there are several layers of important developments. Israel is part of Central Command, as it has been now for several years. This is bringing together Israel and the US in joint meetings and drills, as well as visits by Central Command officers. This also potentially includes more joint participation in regional events.
According to US Naval Forces Central Command statement on its website “US 5th Fleet began a three-week unmanned and artificial intelligence integration event in Bahrain, Nov. 23, that will involve employing new platforms in the region for the first time.” This event is called Digital Horizon and it is focused on “efforts to integrate new unmanned technologies while establishing the world’s first unmanned surface vessel fleet by end of next summer. U.S. 5th Fleet’s efforts are focused on improving what U.S. and regional navies are able to see above, on and below the water.” Vice-Admiral Brad Cooper has talked about the role of unmanned systems a lot in the last year. This comes in the wake of CENTCOM also expressing concerns about drone threats. In fact the drone threat manifested itself recently as a drone allegedly flown from Iran struck a ship called the Pacific Zircon in the Gulf of Oman.
According to the NAVCENT report, “Cooper established a staff called Task Force 59 in September 2021 to speed new tech integration across U.S. 5th Fleet. Since its launch, the task force has deployed a suite of new unmanned systems from operational hubs in Bahrain and Aqaba, Jordan.” Digital Horizon brought together 17 industry partners bringing 15 different types of systems. According to the report these included “Elbit Systems Seagull, [as well as] Exail DriX, L3Harris Arabian Fox MAST-13, Marine Advanced Robotics WAM-V, MARTAC T-38 Devil Ray, Ocean Aero TRITON, Open Ocean Robotics Data Xplorer, Saildrone Explorer, Seasats X3 and SeaTrac SP-48.”
In June JNS reported that “for the first time in its company history, the state-owned Israel Aerospace Industries sponsored and played a central role in the United Arab Emirates’ Global Aerospace Summit 2022, which was held in Abu Dhabi from May 24 to 27. Sharon Biton, IAI vice president for marketing in the Middle East and North Africa, told JNS in recent days that the company’s participation went far beyond business ties.”
In September The Jerusalem Post noted “Israel has agreed to sell its Spyder air defense system to the United Arab Emirates, marking the first time such a state-owned air defense system is sold to a Gulf country.” This is important because air defense is essential for the Gulf States. The UAE is using THAAD and Saudi Arabia has Patriot air defense systems.
In November Rafael Advanced Defense Systems also took part in the Bahrain International Air Show, where they showed off their Spyder air defense system, Spike and other systems. It is one of several Israeli companies that. went to Bahrain. “The Abraham Accords have opened the door for us to participate for the first time in this exhibition and to work collaboratively with our neighbors to deal with the common threats we face in the region,” said Amir Peretz, Chairman of IAI’s Board of Directors, according to a statement from IAI. More details here.
While the recent event in Tel Aviv showcased topics such as diamonds, coffee, gaming, and potentials in water and crypto; as well as the importance of innovations in greentech and irrigation; there has been a lack of focus on cultural exchange. We’ve heard again and again that this is an issue that Israel and the Gulf peace partners want to work on. Of course, challenges remain in the region, as was clear when Israeli media members attended the World Cup in Qatar and some received negative comments during interviews.