Diplomats Get an Up-Close Look at Abraham Accords Through Mideast Tour

JERUSALEM, Israel – To many international leaders and Mideast observers, the Abraham Accords seemed impossible just a few years ago. The historic peace agreements are gaining more acceptance and regional support.

Former Israeli Ambassador to the UN Danny Danon recently gave a group of international diplomats a tour of Israel, Bahrain, and the United Arab Emirates to show them the positive effects the accords are already having on the region.

“We are all very proud of the Abraham Accords that were signed by President Trump, Prime Minister Netanyahu and leaders from the gulf,” said Danon. “Today we see the fruits of those agreements. We took a delegation of diplomats including the vice president of Paraguay, ministers for foreign affairs for an eight-day trip to the UAE, Bahrain and Israel. We feel that it’s an important accord, but we feel that we can do much more with other countries.”

Paraguay’s vice president felt the trip provided deep meaning for him.   

“First of all, being in the Holy Land is always important for every Christian, like I am, and the legacy Danny Danon is passing into us, the ambassador that organized this trip to the three countries that are part of the Abraham Accords,” said Vice President H.E. Hugo Velazquez. “We see that [it] is possible to have peace between the human beings.”

The likely renewal of the Iranian nuclear deal, plus the regime’s threat to Israel and the Gulf states, cast a shadow over the visit and the region. A Bulgarian ambassador sees a region separated into two camps: one of war and one of peace.   

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“I never came here to Jerusalem on a flight from an Arabic country. Yesterday I did that,” said Georgi Panayotov, Bulgaria’s ambassador to the US.

He believes the accords will one day expand “to the next stage, where Israel and the Arabic countries will cooperate with security, international security and will reinforce the camp of peace.” 

For Vesela Korac, Croatia’s ambassador to Israel, the trip expanded her view of the regional accords.

“This trip gave me the opportunity to learn about the Emirati and Bahrani perspective of the Abraham Accords,” said Korac. “After this visit, I believe there is the same level, the highest level of dedication of all three sides for peace, stability and prosperity in the region and even wider than that.”

The trip also opened up new opportunities.

“For example, the minister of foreign affairs from the Central African Republic, she signed diplomatic relations with Bahrain while we were there during the visit. The vice president of Paraguay announced that he will open an embassy the UAE. So, we see the fruits of the accords. And I believe we will be able to do much more. Not only here in the region but worldwide,” said Danon. 

“In addition, it gave me an opportunity to see and explore the possibilities of joining in this ambitious project,” said Croatia’s ambassador. “I’m certain there is a wider possibility of countries like Croatia to join in this niche and cooperation and contribute to the project and also contribute to my country…. it makes a difference for everyone. This is my impression, and it can also make [a] specific impact for countries like Croatia.”

Danon said the diplomats “were amazed” by what they saw.

“All of a sudden, they came to the Middle East and they saw solutions. We saw that we can actually help them to resolve conflicts. We can help them to improve the lives of their citizens in terms of food security, health, agriculture,” said Danon.