Abraham Accords Coming to Fruition for Israel and Bahrain
Israel’s Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi announced that Israel and Bahrain have agreed to open diplomatic missions in each other’s countries, according to Israel Hayom. Bahraini Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Rashid al-Zayani joined Ashkenazi at a press conference after arriving at Ben-Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv this morning. Ashkenazi said he would soon return the favor and travel to Manama, the capital of Bahrain, to discuss financial opportunities. His agenda for that trip will include establishing relations between their respective business communities to promote cooperation and investment. Last week the Knesset ratified the normalization agreement between Israel and Bahrain in a 62-14 vote, with only members of the Joint Arab List voting against the decision.
We’ve been anticipating such a move since the two signed the Abraham Accords to normalize relations with each other back in September. Sometimes as time passes after a major event (like the Abraham Accords), we forget to follow up on the news and, in this case, to see what benefits Israel and Bahrain have reaped through the deal. This is fulfilling to see the two countries rewarded for their landmark agreement. The business cooperation is especially valuable now: Israel, which heavily depends on tourism and suffered disproportionate financial damages by the coronavirus this year, needs a new source of industry to revitalize its economy. The fruit these two nations are reaping from this deal have to encourage other Middle Eastern nations to accept Israel’s olive branch of peace, and we pray they will do just that.
