President Donald Trump presided over the signing of two historic deals between Israel and two different Gulf nations — the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain — on Tuesday. About 700 guests watched the signing on the South Lawn.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu signed a pair of deals that aims to normalize relations with the UAE and Bahrain.
- “We’re here this afternoon to change the course of history. After decades of division and conflict, we mark the dawn of a new Middle East,” Trump said, according to The Washington Post. “Thanks to the courage of the leaders present, we take a major stride toward a future in which people of all faiths and backgrounds can live together in peace and prosperity.”
Netanyahu attended the ceremony at the White House. However, the UAE and Bahrain sent foreign ministers rather than their heads of state.
“To all of Israel’s friends in the Middle East — those who are with us today and those who will join us tomorrow — I say, “salaam aleichem, peace unto thee, shalom,” Netanyahu said, according to the Jerusalem Post.
“The blessings of peace that we make today will be enormous,” Netanyahu said, according to the Jerusalem Post. “First because this peace will eventually expand to include other Arab states, and ultimately, it can end the Arab-Israel conflict once and for all.”
The UAE deal was first announced in August, and the Bahrain deal was announced last week, Fox News reports.
Why it matters:
The move will boost Trump’s foreign policy relations as he heads into the thick of re-election season. It also represents the first time an Arab state has made peace with Israel since Jordan did it in 1994.
- “Neither UAE nor Bahrain is at war with Israel, so the document is not a peace treaty in the formal sense. But until now, both Persian Gulf states had officially considered Israel to be illegitimate,” according to The Washington Post.
Trump told ”Fox & Friends” on Tuesday morning that other countries want to normalize relations, too.
- “You’re going to have peace in the Middle East,” Trump said.
- He said Iran is “actually getting to a point where they’re going to want to make a deal. They won’t say that outwardly. They want to make a deal.”
What do each sides get?
The deals will help these counties create a better relationship with President Donald Trump, according to CNN.
- “Politically, it is also a win-win situation for the UAE and Bahrain. Either Trump wins a second term in November and they have already scored points with his administration, or a Biden administration takes over and they are on strong footing having secured normalization agreements with Israel.”