EAJC President Dr. Michael M. Mirilashvili welcomed the decision to conclude an agreement on the normalization of relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates

The conclusion of an agreement on the normalization of relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates is an important milestone in the history of the development of Arab-Israeli relations. It is worth noting that for a long time Israel and the AOI maintained contacts in various fields, however, due to the difficult geopolitical situation, only now, thanks to the efforts of the leaders of the countries, the normalization of bilateral relations was brought to the home stretch.

The agreement on normalization and the development of a “road map”, brokered by US President Donald Trump, opens up new bright prospects for cooperation between states and peoples. It is equally important that this agreement provides opportunities for religious and cultural dialogue, which might rebuild the relations between representatives of the Abrahamic religions. Such an approach, rooted in the desire for better mutual understanding and knowledge of each other, opens up prospects that will determine the pace of development of the entire Middle East region.

Public diplomacy plays nowadays the most important role in the interethnic dialogue. This is the path to mutually beneficial cultural, economic, scientific and social cooperation. We hope that the Jewish community of the United Arab Emirates, together with the Jewish communities of the Euro-Asian region, will be able to become a bridge between the UAE, Israel and the organized Jewish world.

The EAJC leaders welcome the agreement and are ready to contribute to the development of positive processes related to the normalization of relations between the countries. We sincerely hope that other Arab countries will also follow the path of normalization, and we will be able to see the opening ceremonies of their embassies in the Jewish state in the nearest future.