Israel Enters Gulf, Opens Its First Embassy In UAE

Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid has open the first embassy of Israel in the Gulf during a visit to the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

According to the reports, nine months after the normalization of diplomatic relations, Israel opened an embassy in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates.

The Israeli Foreign Minister met with his Emirati counterpart Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan on Wednesday.

Shortly after the embassy opened, he shared a photo of the handshake on Twitter.

US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken called the opening of the Israeli embassy “historic.”

“The visit of Yair Lapid and the opening of an embassy in a Gulf state are” important for Israel, the United Arab Emirates and the wider region, “he said in a statement.

Israeli ministers have visited the UAE before, but new Foreign Minister Yair Lapid has become the most senior Israeli minister to make the trip and the first official to pay an official visit.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, Israeli Foreign Minister Laird Lapid said, “Israel wants peace with its neighbours. We are not going anywhere. The Middle East is our home. We will stay here We urge all countries in the region to recognize this and come and talk to us. ”

According to Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Lior Haiat, Laird will meet with five (Emirati) ministers in less than 30 hours.

Israel’s top diplomat, Yair Lapid, began a visit to the United Arab Emirates on Tuesday. This is the first official visit of an Israeli minister to the UAE.

The United Arab Emirates and Israel established normal relations in September last year.

Last year, an agreement was reached with the United Arab Emirates to establish normal Israeli relations with the administration of former US President Donald Trump.

Lapid will also inaugurate the Israeli Consulate General in Dubai during his visit.

The visit is not only of symbolic significance to the Arab world but also the first formal official contact between the two sides since the Israeli-Gaza conflict in May.

According to the United Nations, at least 256 people were killed in Gaza during the Israeli-Hamas conflict, while 13 people were killed in Israel.

The 11-day conflict between Israel and Hamas was a test for the recently established relations between the United Arab Emirates and Israel, especially when the UAE signed an agreement with Israel on the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Presented as an opportunity to join, which was strongly opposed by Palestine.

At the start of the fighting, the UAE condemned the possible evacuation of Palestinians from homes in East Jerusalem claimed by Jewish settlers. This issue is the focus of Israeli-Palestinian tensions. During the conflict, the UAE urged Israel to find a solution.

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