Gulf countries, including heavyweights such as the UAE and Saudi Arabia, are holding meetings and discussions about the region. These have implications for their policy on Israel and Palestinian issues.
UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan had met with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman during a visit to Riyadh, UAE-based newspaper The National reported Wednesday.
The meeting of these two key leaders is important. It serves as a curtain-raiser on policy coordination ahead of the United Nations General Assembly this month.
There is expected to be an increased push for Palestinian statehood at the meeting. The US has banned Palestinian Authority officials from attending.
Gulf countries are nonplussed by this decision and are now discussing what comes next. They likely want to see the PA empowered and Hamas sidelined.
“Sheikh Mohamed was welcomed by Prince Mohammed on arrival at King Khalid International Airport,” The National reported. “A high-level Emirati delegation accompanied the Emirati leader. UAE news agency WAM described the trip as a fraternal visit.”
Meanwhile, the UAE has criticized any attempt by Israel to annex the West Bank. The UAE has said “Israel’s annexation of the West Bank is a redline,” Saudi-based news channel Al Arabiya reported.
“In exclusive statements to Reuters, UAE Assistant Foreign Minister Lana Nusseibeh considered Israel’s desire to annex the West Bank a redline for her country, while also severely undermining the spirit of the Abraham Accords normalization,” the report said.
The UAE is also concerned that “extremists” within the Israeli government are dictating Israel’s policing and affecting the region. They believe this will lead to instability.
The UAE made the choice in 2020 to embrace the Abraham Accords to advance stability and moderation in the region. It also wanted to stop Israel from annexing the West Bank.
Abu Dhabi appears to think that since its decision to move forward and take the risks associated with normalization, Israel has not embraced the path of stability, but instead, some Israeli politicians feel empowered to embrace more extreme stances.
Bahrain, which is also a member of the Abraham Accords, and Egypt issued a statement this week in which they “affirmed their rejection of any attempts to displace the Palestinian people from their land and emphasized the need to immediately begin the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip,” Al Ain News, a UAE-based news site, reported.
“This came during Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi’s reception of Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Crown Prince and Prime Minister of Bahrain, at Al-Ittihadiya Palace on Wednesday,” the report said.
Sisi recently hosted the UAE leader. Clearly, these countries are coordinating policy.
Saudi Arabia and France work towards a Palestinian state
This comes as Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and French President Emmanuel Macron held discussions on Tuesday on the “dire situation in Palestine,” Saudi-based newspaper Arab News reported.
The crown prince, “who received a call from Macron, reiterated the Kingdom’s position for an immediate end to Israel’s war on Gaza and the Occupied Territories,” the report said. “The crown prince also condemned any measures aimed at undermining a two-state solution to the situation.”
“Saudi Arabia and France have led an initiative to recognize a Palestinian state,” it added. “In July, Macron announced France would formally recognize Palestine during the UN General Assembly later this month, becoming the first G7 country to make the commitment.”
The key meetings between the UAE and Egypt and then the UAE and Saudi Arabia, along with announcements by Bahrain, Egypt, and Riyad, all point in the same direction: The Gulf is rolling out policies before the UN meetings.
The development comes as the PA is messaging that it is concerned Israel is preventing it from returning to Gaza and thus enshrining Hamas rule there. Israel has said neither the PA nor Hamas will rule Gaza.
In the absence of a clear strategy, however, it appears Hamas will continue to rule. IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Eyal Zamir has warned that Israel is slouching toward military rule in Gaza if the Gaza City offensive goes forward.
This comes amid talk of Israel applying sovereignty to part of the West Bank. The Gulf states are concerned about this trend.