Middle East politics has been heated over the signing of the "Abraham Accord" by the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain with Israel. The agreement was signed by the two countries on Tuesday, September 15, under the mediation of US President Donald Trump. Palestinians have expressed outrage at the signing of the agreement by the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain.
Meanwhile, rockets have been fired from Hamas-controlled Gaza in protest of the deal. The rocket attack took place on the eve of the signing of the agreement. However, no casualties were reported. The contracting and mediating parties, however, said that Abraham Accord will lead the way to peace in the Middle East. But, apparently, that doesn't seem to be the case. Instead, the deal will benefit US President Donald Trump and Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu. Donald Trump sees the deal as a major foreign policy success for his government. The results of this success will be used by Donald Trump in the upcoming elections. On the other hand, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is somewhat in the back foot in politics over corruption, would like to use this success to cover up his corruption.
Now let's come to the benefits of the UAE and Bahrain. The UAE has long sought to strengthen itself militarily in the region. At the same time, the UAE is quite uneasy about the geopolitics of the region with Iran. Because of this, the United States appears to have persuaded the United Arab Emirates to sign the Abraham Agreement through a pledge of arms. The list of such weapons includes F-35 fighter jets and EA-16G Groller electronic warplanes. The UAE used to dream of these weapons. In addition to the economy, the UAE also seeks to improve relations with Israel with the goal of technological excellence.
Like the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain is geographically uncomfortable with Iran. Although Bahrain is a Shiite-majority country, its rulers are Sunnis. For this reason, the ruling group in Bahrain has to face a lot of internal and external pressure on the neighboring Shiite state of Iran. Through the Abraham Agreement, therefore, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates want to put geographical pressure on Iran and Syria. However, above all, Donald Trump has acted as a big factor in the Abraham deal. Many analysts said that Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates have agreed to the Abraham Agreement, mediated by Donald Trump and indirectly by the Saudi rulers.
In the Middle East, the regional conflict between Iran and Saudi Arabia is long-standing. Religious ideological differences, including Iran's continued military buildup are a major source of concern for Saudi Arabia. For this reason, Saudi Arabia seeks to consolidate its position in regional politics with its ally Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates. It remains to be seen which path Saudi Arabia will take after the Abraham Accords. Although the US President says the Abraham Agreement has been executed to establish peace in the Middle East. But under the guise of peace, US President Donald Trump wants to strengthen the friendly state of Israel in the Middle East and subdue Iran.
Palestinian leaders have expressed outrage. This is a huge loss for the national rights of the Palestinian people and for a united Arab state, they said. The Abraham Accords may temporarily end Israel's aggression in Palestine, but there is no long-term end to the aggression. This is evident from a review of past history. In order to effectively balance peace and power in the Middle East, all disputes, including land, must be resolved through negotiations with the Palestinians and Israel. Otherwise, the cries of ordinary Palestinian people will not stop. To this end, the OIC and the United Nations must take effective measures. Otherwise, the Palestinian people will be the victims of repeated conspiracy theories and the Middle East peace process will be hampered.
Md. Hasan Tareq, Lecturer, Department of Political Science, Dr. Malika College, Dhaka.