More secret meetings disclosed between UAE and Israel
Media reports reveal more and more secret meetings between the UAE and Israel in light of an unprecedented escalation of the pace of normalization between them, including the near signing of a bilateral non-aggression treaty.
The American Axios website said that a secret American-Israeli-tripartite meeting was held late last year on coordination against Iran, and at the same time dealt with the normalization of relations between Abu Dhabi and Tel Aviv.
The website quoted Israeli and American officials as saying that the meeting that took place last December 17 in the White House is part of a series of steps by the administration of US President Donald Trump to facilitate relations between Israel and the Arab countries.
American and Israeli sources said that the meeting included a discussion of a non-aggression treaty between the UAE and Israel.
She added that the treaty would be a step that would pave the way towards a normalization of relations between the two parties, noting that Jared Kushner, the American president’s son-in-law, and senior adviser, had a major role in this initiative.
According to Axios, the meeting was attended by US National Security Adviser Robert O’Brien, his deputy and special envoy to Iran, Brian Hook and his assistant, Victoria Coates, while the Israeli team, Meir Bin Shabat, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s national security adviser, attended, and on behalf of the UAE, its ambassador to Washington, Yousef Al-Otaiba.
And the American website quoted Israeli and American sources as saying that the secret meeting explains a tweet published by the UAE Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed on December 21 last year, in which it stated, “Reforming Islam: An Arab-Israeli alliance formed in the Middle East.”
He pointed out that the next day Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu commented on what was stated in the tweet by saying that the Emirati minister’s talk about forming an Arab-Israeli alliance is the result of contacts and efforts that must be kept secret at this stage.
The Axios report indicates Washington’s relentless pursuit in recent months to bring Israel closer to Arab states.
The report was originally titled “The Iranian Threat”, but it also included talk about efforts being made to bring Israel closer to the Gulf states, through the gateway to normalization between Abu Dhabi and Tel Aviv.
It was also mentioned in the Axios report that Washington is pushing for other forms of normalization, such as doubling the visits of Israelis to certain countries in the Gulf and organizing flights, specifically to Abu Dhabi.
For its part, a report of the Israeli channel 13 revealed that a secret meeting was held in the White House last December that brought together the UAE Ambassador to Washington Yusef Al-Otaiba, the Israeli National Security Adviser Meir Bin Shabat, the American National Security Adviser Robert O’Brien and the American envoy to Iran Brian Hook. The meeting dealt with means of coordination between the three countries against Iran.
Israeli Channel 13 correspondent said that the meeting came within the efforts of the Trump administration to bring relations between Israel and the UAE closer, pointing out that cooperation between the UAE and Israel started during the Rabin government in 1995, through meetings coordinated by Rabin’s adviser at the time, Shimon Shabes, and culminated in secret meetings in which he participated. The head of the Mossad at the time, Shabtai Shabit in Geneva, included the Emirati Emir Mohammed bin Zayed.
In this context, the Axios website said that the aforementioned meeting also dealt with talks to sign an agreement between Israel and the UAE not to attack, as a preliminary step towards establishing diplomatic relations between the two parties, and that Jared Kouchner played a fundamental role in organizing the secret meeting.
Channel 13 report noted that after initial contacts with the UAE in 1995, Rabin withdrew his opposition to supplying the UAE with F-16 fighters.
The report on the Israeli channel, as well as on the Axus website, referred to the great efforts made by Netanyahu specifically in strengthening the secret alliance between the Emirates and Israel against Iran, and that the starting point in these efforts was last February, during the US-led conference in Warsaw against Iran, and Israel and a number of Gulf countries also participated in it.
After the aforementioned Warsaw conference, the American administration decided to weave a tripartite alliance bringing together the United States, the Emirates and Israel to enhance cooperation between these countries against Iran.
According to Axios, during the past year, I have held at least three meetings, and the American Wall Street Journal has previously mentioned one of these meetings.
