Arab states sour on Israel in blow to US aim of Saudi peace pact
- Abraham Accord states are frustrated about Israel’s West Bank policies
- The United States has ambition to bring Israel and Saudi Arabia together
Tensions between Gulf states and Israel are rising three years after historic peace deals, slowing down hoped-for investments and setting back US efforts to further integrate the region by including main power Saudi Arabia.
The United Arab Emirates has expressed frustration in high-level contacts with Israel about the outcome of the 2020 Abraham Accords negotiated under the US presidency of Donald Trump, while Bahrain has outlined its disappointment, according to people familiar with the matter.
That’s largely due to concerns over Israel’s deteriorating relations with the Palestinians – typified by the recent deadly raid on a refugee camp in the city of Jenin and incendiary comments by some far-right Israeli cabinet members.
The strains are likely to complicate the US’s already challenging goal of deepening relations between Israel and Middle Eastern nations, particularly Saudi Arabia.
The White House has been encouraging Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to approach Israel about a deal. The de facto ruler has so far held off and in March restored diplomatic ties with Israel’s arch-enemy Iran through a China-brokered arrangement.
“This is not part of the vision some in the Abraham Accords had – Israel wanted it as an anti-Iranian axis,” said Aziz Alghashian, a Riyadh-based analyst who studies Saudi policy toward Israel. “The region is moving in a different direction now.”