| Top of the Agenda |
| Israel to Sign Normalization Agreements With Bahrain, United Arab Emirates |
| Israel is set to sign (CNN) agreements to normalize diplomatic ties with Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates in a White House ceremony today. The Bahrain-Israel deal will be primarily declarative (National) and less detailed than the Israel-UAE deal, according to an unnamed U.S. official.
The agreements, championed by the Donald J. Trump administration, offer all three countries political and economic advantages (FT). But they have been roundly rejected by Palestinian factions, including Hamas and Fatah, that have recently coalesced in opposition (Al Jazeera). Protests are planned today in Gaza and the West Bank and outside embassies around the world. |
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| Analysis |
| “Israel and the UAE believe that their power and thus their ability to secure their interests is enhanced by establishing normal relations, and they are not going to let the Palestinians get in the way,” CFR’s Steven A. Cook writes for Foreign Policy.
“It is a big boost for [Trump’s] strategy of ‘maximum pressure’ on Iran. It is also useful ammunition, especially in an election year, to back his boast that he is the world’s best dealmaker,” BBC’s Jeremy Bowen writes. |
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