The Third Israel-Arab Peace Deal

[Salus Maior]

Then I would suggest that the title is misleading.

The title refers to the fact that two Arab countries made peace with Israel before this I believe.
It is not saying all Arabs did, because they never did before.

But maybe it should say specifically Israel and UAE.

Yeah, "Arab" is a bit broad when we're talking about the ME.

[Borderlands of Rojava]

Saudi Arabia is more than willing to sell out the Palestinians, and the US is not an unbiased moderator. What's new?

The UAE recognizing Israel is new.

In my worldview, the gulf states are all just Saudi arabia. They're awfully alike.

[Novus America]

The UAE recognizing Israel is new.

In my worldview, the gulf states are all just Saudi arabia. They're awfully alike.

That is quite unfairly reductionist, despite many similarities they are different, and often have different, even conflicting foreign policies.

[Hakinda Herseyi Duymak istiyorum]

The UAE recognizing Israel is new.

In my worldview, the gulf states are all just Saudi arabia. They're awfully alike.

your worldview is wrong, travel the world and read a book

[Chez Satan]

In my worldview, the gulf states are all just Saudi arabia. They're awfully alike.

They're not.

Even within the UAE, there are noticeable differences between the emirates.
There is a reason Qatar refused to join the UAE, and went it alone (hint: Qatar is way more conservative than Dubayy or Abu Dhabi).
Bahrain has a reputation for being - at least in some respects - on the liberal side of the Arabian-peninsulan political spectre.
Yemen has a vast tribal network / conflict, and a significant Shi'a presence.
Oman has its own language, its own variety if Islam, and a parliament that, until a few years ago, seemed on the road to full-fledged democracy.
Quwait, meanwhile, is stuck in the past, stuck in oppression, and stuck in oil.

[Novus America]

In my worldview, the gulf states are all just Saudi arabia. They're awfully alike.

They're not.

Even within the UAE, there are noticeable differences between the emirates.
There is a reason Qatar refused to join the UAE, and went it alone (hint: Qatar is way more conservative than Dubayy or Abu Dhabi).
Bahrain has a reputation for being - at least in some respects - on the liberal side of the Arabian-peninsulan political spectre.
Yemen has a vast tribal network / conflict, and a significant Shi'a presence.
Oman has its own language, its own variety if Islam, and a parliament that, until a few years ago, seemed on the road to full-fledged democracy.
Quwait, meanwhile, is stuck in the past, stuck in oppression, and stuck in oil.

Yemen is not really Gulf Arab not being on the Gulf but the rest is fair.
Obviously there are som major differences, especially in foreign policy.

[Chez Satan]

They're not.

Even within the UAE, there are noticeable differences between the emirates.
There is a reason Qatar refused to join the UAE, and went it alone (hint: Qatar is way more conservative than Dubayy or Abu Dhabi).
Bahrain has a reputation for being - at least in some respects - on the liberal side of the Arabian-peninsulan political spectre.
Yemen has a vast tribal network / conflict, and a significant Shi'a presence.
Oman has its own language, its own variety if Islam, and a parliament that, until a few years ago, seemed on the road to full-fledged democracy.
Quwait, meanwhile, is stuck in the past, stuck in oppression, and stuck in oil.

Yemen is not really Gulf Arab not being on the Gulf but the rest is fair.
Obviously there are som major differences, especially in foreign policy.

Fair point about Yemen.

Let me replace it with Saudi Arabia itself, where historically and religiously, there are HUGE differences between Nejd and Hejaz ( = between the urban west of the country and the tribal east of the country, where the royal family has its origins).

[US-SSR]

A not-much-of-anything burger that won't change diddly in the Middle East. My question is what favor did Trump do for the UAE so they would promise to play nice with Bibi for awhile.

[North German Realm]

A not-much-of-anything burger that won't change diddly in the Middle East. My question is what favor did Trump do for the UAE so they would promise to play nice with Bibi for awhile.

I mean, a relatively powerful player in the region (both economy-wise and diplomatically speaking) actively recognizes Israel as a state after 70 years without a normalized relationship. It's actually pretty important as far as treaties go.

[Costa Fierro]

A not-much-of-anything burger that won't change diddly in the Middle East. My question is what favor did Trump do for the UAE so they would promise to play nice with Bibi for awhile.

I would bet that it's likely the UAE is recognising that it has a strategic advantage when it comes to geopolitics and military competency.

Both Israel and the Gulf States share common ground of being wary of Iran and Iran's plans and influence. Qatar has been engaging with Israel for years, the UAE coming out and normalising relations is likely to influence other states as well.

What the UAE seeks to gain from Israel aside from the economic benefits, is an ally in the Middle East with much greater technological advantages in terms of military equipment, an ally that shares the same broader geopolitical concerns and aims, as well as significant military backing from the United States. The UAE has realised this, and decided it's more pragmatic to put aside old scores for mutually beneficial cooperation.

[Loben III]

Hope it lasts.

[Novus America]

A not-much-of-anything burger that won't change diddly in the Middle East. My question is what favor did Trump do for the UAE so they would promise to play nice with Bibi for awhile.

Actually this is a big deal, this is only the third time in history this happened.
The refusal to acknowledge the existence of Israel amongst many states in the region is helping drive conflict.
So I know you hate with a passion that Trump despite his flaws sometimes does something right, blind partisanship is a cancer. One you need to cure your views of.

Also as long as it was in the President’s power to promise, making a promise to get something is not inherently wrong.
International relations, especially in places like the Middle East works around rational self interest, not blind idealism.

[-Astoria-]

The UAE recognizing Israel is new.

In my worldview, the gulf states are all just Saudi arabia. They're awfully alike.

Qatar & Oman would like to have a word.

[North German Realm]

A not-much-of-anything burger that won't change diddly in the Middle East. My question is what favor did Trump do for the UAE so they would promise to play nice with Bibi for awhile.

Actually this is a big deal, this is only the its time in history this happened.
The refusal to acknowledge the existence of Israel amongst many states in the region is helping drive conflict.
So I know you hate with a passion that Trump despite his flaws sometimes does something right, blind partisanship is a cancer. One you need to cure your views of.

Also as long as it was in the President’s power to promise, making a promise to get something is not inherently wrong.
International relations, especially in places like the Middle East works around rational self interest, not blind idealism.

Technically it's the third time tbh.

[Novus America]

Actually this is a big deal, this is only the its time in history this happened.
The refusal to acknowledge the existence of Israel amongst many states in the region is helping drive conflict.
So I know you hate with a passion that Trump despite his flaws sometimes does something right, blind partisanship is a cancer. One you need to cure your views of.

Also as long as it was in the President’s power to promise, making a promise to get something is not inherently wrong.
International relations, especially in places like the Middle East works around rational self interest, not blind idealism.

Technically it's the third time tbh.

Yes, my autocorrect turned “third” in to “its” for some reason.

[The Archregimancy]

The UAE recognizing Israel is new.

In my worldview, the gulf states are all just Saudi arabia. They're awfully alike.

As a former resident of Dubai who is currently considering the possibility of work in Saudi Arabia, and has also worked in Qatar and Oman (and visited Bahrain), I can state with some measure of confidence that your worldview is mistaken.

There are obvious cultural similarities between the various states of the Gulf Cooperation Council, but there are significant social, religious, and political differences as well. Taking just one of the most obvious, not all of the GCC states even follow the same branch of Islam; Oman is majority Ibadi, not Sunni.

And it looks likely Oman will be recognising Israel in the coming days. There have been hints that another country will follow soon, and Netanyahu has previously made a public visit to Oman in 2018, shortly before the previous Sultan's death, and because Oman is majority Ibadi, it's often been used as an informal negotiating bridge between GCC states and both Iran and Israel in the past. The other GCC candidate for recognising Israel would be Bahrain, largely out of fear of Iran (Iran has advanced claims to Bahrain's territory in the past, and the tiny kingdom is majority Shia).

[US-SSR]

A not-much-of-anything burger that won't change diddly in the Middle East. My question is what favor did Trump do for the UAE so they would promise to play nice with Bibi for awhile.

Actually this is a big deal, this is only the third time in history this happened.
The refusal to acknowledge the existence of Israel amongst many states in the region is helping drive conflict.
So I know you hate with a passion that Trump despite his flaws sometimes does something right, blind partisanship is a cancer. One you need to cure your views of.

Also as long as it was in the President’s power to promise, making a promise to get something is not inherently wrong.
International relations, especially in places like the Middle East works around rational self interest, not blind idealism.

Actually, as we now know, promising to release Congressionally-appropriated foreign assistance in return for fabricated dirt about a possible opposition Presidential candidate is impeachable. As is, probably, using an Ambassador to beg for moving a major golf tournament to a President's resort and promising to lift tariffs in exchange for increased commodity purchases that would help a President's campaign. Admittedly the point is somewhat moot. 80 days.

[Novus America]

Actually this is a big deal, this is only the third time in history this happened.
The refusal to acknowledge the existence of Israel amongst many states in the region is helping drive conflict.
So I know you hate with a passion that Trump despite his flaws sometimes does something right, blind partisanship is a cancer. One you need to cure your views of.

Also as long as it was in the President’s power to promise, making a promise to get something is not inherently wrong.
International relations, especially in places like the Middle East works around rational self interest, not blind idealism.

Actually, as we now know, promising to release Congressionally-appropriated foreign assistance in return for fabricated dirt about a possible opposition Presidential candidate is impeachable. As is, probably, using an Ambassador to beg for moving a major golf tournament to a President's resort and promising to lift tariffs in exchange for increased commodity purchases that would help a President's campaign. Admittedly the point is somewhat moot. 80 days.

What the hell do any of those have to do with the UAE?
This is a good thing regardless, regardless of who wins in November, regardless of what you think of Trump on other things.

Biden acknowledged this was a good and historic step.