On Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu revealed that he had held secret direct talks with the leaders of a number of Arab countries to normalize relations with them.
This came in a joint press conference held with Jared Kushner, advisor to US President Donald Trump, in Jerusalem.
Netanyahu described the normalization agreement between Israel and the UAE as “historic”, adding, “If we left the matter to the Palestinians, we would never have reached any agreements.”
And he added, “All of this has changed with two things, namely the Trump plan, and the decisions and capabilities that some Arab countries possess with the support of the United States.””
He continued: “The agreement with the UAE will work to promote peace without any Palestinian veto.”
He added, “Then the Palestinians will understand that the veto they put in place does not matter, and Trump’s plan will remain the most important to promote peace, and no Israeli will leave his home.”
For his part, Kushner said during the same conference, that he was “not optimistic about peace prior to the conclusion of the Israeli-Emirati agreement.”
And he added, “We will continue to promote peace between Israel and the Arab countries.”
The press conference for Netanyahu and Kouchner comes nearly 24 hours before an Israeli delegation, accompanied by American officials, leaves for Abu Dhabi, with the aim of pushing forward the normalization agreement between Israel and the UAE.
On August 13, Trump announced that UAE and Israel had reached an agreement to normalize relations between them.
The agreement was met with widespread Arab popular rejection and condemnation from the Palestinian factions and leadership, as the latter considered it a “betrayal” by the Emirates of Jerusalem, the Al-Aqsa Mosque, and the Palestinian cause.
