Military Reasons to Celebrate the Israel-UAE Deal
This could be the first step toward a strategic coalition to check aggression from Iran.
Benny Gantz and Gabi Ashkenazi of Israel.
Photographer: Gili Yaari/NurPhoto via Getty ImagesLast week, Israel and the United Arab Emirates announced a deal: The Arab state would formally recognize Israel in exchange for Israel halting annexation of Palestinian territory in the West Bank. This followed a public invitation by the UAE ambassador to Washington, Yusef al-Otaiba, a highly respected diplomat and a good friend of mine.
The ambassador laid out the deal in clear, respectful language. The Trump administration helped coordinate the details, building on work that presidential adviser Jared Kushner has been facilitating as part of the larger (and thus far unsuccessful) push for an overall peace deal. Reflecting earlier work by the Bush and Obama administrations to bring the Arab and Israeli sides together, it is an important bipartisan step toward Israeli-Arab rapprochement that may in time bear significant fruit.