On video: the visit of the UAE foreign minister to Yad Vashem (without)
The United Arab Emirates canceled Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's visit to the country in early January, due to fears that his conduct during the visit could cause regional tensions with Iran - this is what three senior Israeli officials briefed on the details of the visit said today (Thursday).
why is it important
The new details about the reasons that led to the cancellation of the visit and which are published for the first time in Vala!
They refute the explanations of the Prime Minister's Office in real time as if the visit was postponed for logistical reasons.
The cancellation of the visit also indicates that the two countries, which signed a peace agreement about two years ago, are divided when it comes to their public position on the Iranian issue.
The cancellation of the visit in early January was the fifth time that a planned trip by Netanyahu to the United Arab Emirates has been postponed or canceled since the signing of the Abraham Accords in September 2020.
wanted to speak out against Iran.
Netanyahu (Photo: Flash 90, Olivier Fitoussi)
reminder
When Netanyahu took office at the end of December, he said that his first visit abroad would be to the United Arab Emirates.
At the end of December, Netanyahu spoke with the President of the United Arab Emirates, Mohammed bin Zayed, who invited him to the country.
At Netanyahu's office, reporters began to be briefed that the trip would take place in the second week of January.
However, a few days later, a few hours after the visit of National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gabir to the Temple Mount (Haram al-Sharif), the Prime Minister's Office said that the trip to the United Arab Emirates had been postponed.
Netanyahu's advisers said at the time that the postponement was due to logistical reasons and that it was not related to Ben Gabir's visit to the Temple Mount, which was condemned by the United Arab Emirates and other Arab countries.
Behind the Scenes
Three senior Israeli officials, who were directly aware of the issue, said that the reason for the postponement was indeed unrelated to Ben Gabir's visit, but was also not due to logistical reasons as claimed by Netanyahu's people.
According to them, the Emiratis wanted the visit to focus on the Abraham Accords and relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates in the fields of economy, tourism and trade.
But Netanyahu had other plans.
He wanted to use the visit, among other things, as a public signal against Iran, Israeli officials said.
The Emiratis feared that during Netanyahu's visit he would publicly speak out against the Iranian, while he was on their soil.
Israeli officials said that the Emiratis feared that such conduct would increase tensions with Iran, and therefore decided to postpone the visit.
The rejection has nothing to do with him.
Ben Gvir (Photo: Roni Knafo)
what are they saying
The Prime Minister's office refused to comment on the matter.
Two senior Emirati officials refused to comment on the reasons for delaying Netanyahu's visit, but stated that the leadership of the United Arab Emirates is interested in Netanyahu visiting the country.
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the situation picture
The Israeli officials said that Netanyahu understood the sensitive situation in which the Emirates are facing Iran and agreed to commit that any future visit to the United Arab Emirates would focus, at least publicly, on the bilateral relations between the countries and not on the Iranian issue.
However, the escalation in the West Bank since Netanyahu took office has meanwhile created another obstacle to the visit.
The Israeli officials stated that the political sensitivities of the Emiratis regarding the Palestinian issue have so far delayed the coordination of a new date for the visit.
news
Political-political
Tags
Iran
Benjamin Netanyahu
United Arab Emirates