Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu may meet with Saudi Arabian prince Mohammed bin Salman during his planned visit to the United Arab Emirates on Thursday, Israeli television reported on Wednesday.
Public broadcaster Kan said there were “advanced contacts” about preparing for the meeting as part of Netanyahu’s expected meeting on Thursday with Abu Dhabi’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. The report, which did not cite a source, did not provide further details.
Separately, the news on Channel 13 reported that Netanyahu could meet with his Sudanese counterpart Abdalla Hamdok while in the United Arab Emirates. The report said Israel is in talks to make the meeting happen, but gave no further details.
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Netanyahu met last year in Uganda with General Abdel-Fattah Burhan, head of Sudan’s sovereign council.
Prime Minister of Sudan, Abdalla Hamdok, at a press conference in Khartoum, Sudan, August 21, 2019. (Photo, AP file)
The premiere will only be at Abu Dhabi airport and Thursday’s trip should not last more than a few hours, according to Channel 12 reports. The network also said that Defense Minister Benny Gantz would meet the Crown Prince from Abu Dhabi at the UAE arms fair last month, before the Israeli delegation was canceled for security reasons.
Netanyahu flew to Saudi Arabia in November to meet Bin Salman, the first publicly reported meeting between the two. Israel and Saudi Arabia have no diplomatic relations, but clandestine ties have strengthened in recent years, as the two countries faced a common threat in Iran.
The November meeting fueled frantic speculation in Israel that a normalization agreement could be struck, following the US-mediated pacts that Israel reached the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Sudan. In December, Morocco agreed to re-establish diplomatic relations with Israel.
From left to right: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, US President Donald Trump, Bahrain Foreign Minister Abdullatif al-Zayani and UAE Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed al-Nahyan are seen on the veranda of the Blue Room after signing the Abraham Agreements during a ceremony on the south lawn of the White House in Washington, September 15, 2020. (AP Photo / Alex Brandon)
In the wake of these agreements, Trump officials said that an agreement with Saudi Arabia is “inevitable”, although Saudi officials have said that a peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians must precede recognition of the Jewish state.
Officials said last week that the United States wants to negotiate a peace agreement between Israel and Saudi Arabia, but only if Riyadh improves its human rights record. The comments followed the release of a United States intelligence report accusing the Saudi Crown Prince of giving the green light to the assassination of Saudi journalist and royal critic Jamal Khashoggi, as part of American President Joe Biden’s desire to “recalibrate” ties with the Saudi Arabia.
Last month, the Hebrew media reported that senior Israeli and Saudi officials recently made several phone calls to discuss the Biden government’s plans to return to the nuclear deal with Iran.
During the talks, the Saudis expressed concern about the new US administration and regretted their focus on human rights violations in the kingdom.
According to a report last month, Israel planned to lobby the Biden government not to pressure regional allies in Saudi Arabia, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates on human rights issues, fearing that this could jeopardize improved ties. of the Jewish state with some Arabs. countries and strengthen Iran.
Possible trip without quarantine between Israel, United Arab Emirates
Kan also reported on Wednesday that Israel and the United Arab Emirates have started negotiations to allow entry of vaccinated travelers from their respective countries without quarantine.
The goal is to dispense quarantine for vaccinees in April, according to the report.
Currently, only Georgia recognizes Israel’s “Green Pass”. The US does not recognize it and Israelis traveling there must have a negative virus test and spend some time in quarantine.
Agreements last month with Greece and Cyprus that would allow “Green Pass” holders to travel between countries without quarantine or virus testing have not yet been formally implemented.
Medical technicians test passengers for COVID-19 at Ben Gurion International Airport near Tel Aviv on March 8, 2021 (Avshalom Sassoni / Flash90)
Diplomatic sources told the news site Ynet this week that the European Union, of which Greece and Cyprus are members, is strongly opposed to any of its members signing individual travel agreements for vaccinees.
Germany in particular is against the idea, according to the report, because it sees the “vaccine passport” system as a form of discrimination against those who do not want to be vaccinated, as well as a desire to help boost domestic tourism. inside. European bloc.
On Monday, a senior World Health Organization official said that so-called “vaccine passports” for COVID-19 should not be used for international travel at this time due to numerous concerns, including ethical considerations that vaccines against coronaviruses are not readily available globally.
AFP contributed to this report.
