DUBAI — Israel’s new foreign minister was in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Tuesday, kicking off the highest-level visit by an Israeli official to the Gulf Arab state since the two countries formally established relations nine months ago.
Foreign Minister Yair Lapid is expected to meet the UAE’s foreign minister in Abu Dhabi, with talks likely to focus in part on Iran, which both countries view as a top regional threat, according to AP.
Soon after his arrival in the UAE, Lapid told diplomats gathered at the inauguration of the Israeli Embassy in Abu Dhabi that the moment represented “the right to determine our fate by ourselves.” Israel, he said, isn’t going anywhere.
“The Middle East is our home. We’re here to stay. We call on all the countries of the region to recognize that. And to come talk to us,” he said, according to the speech released by Israel’s Foreign Ministry. Press access to Lapid’s various events in the UAE has been strictly limited to Emirati media or select Israeli outlets traveling with the minister.
The Trump administration brokered the so-called “Abraham Accords” agreement that established ties between the UAE and Israel. It was hailed at the time by both Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Donald Trump as among their greatest achievements.
Lapid’s visit to the UAE was one that Netanyahu had hoped to make himself before his 12-year-run at the helm ended earlier this month. He’d repeatedly tried to score a lightning trip to Abu Dhabi to capitalise on the normalisation deal his government signed and boost his re-election campaign.
