The visit will be the first-ever by an Israeli prime minister to the Gulf state, and comes as tensions with Iran continue to grow.

 Abu Dhabi's Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan arrives at Downing Street, London, Britain, September 16, 2021. (photo credit: REUTERS/HANNAH MCKAY)
Abu Dhabi’s Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan arrives at Downing Street, London, Britain, September 16, 2021. (photo credit: REUTERS/HANNAH MCKAY)

 

Prime Minister Naftali Bennett is traveling to the United Arab Emirates Sunday to meet Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, in the highest-level public visit since the countries formalized relations last year.

The Iranian threat will likely be a main focus of their meeting. There have been signs of a reprochment between the UAE and Iran. UAE National Security Adviser Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan met recently with Iran President Ebrahim Raisi and with and Iranian Supreme National Security Council Secretary Ali Shamkhani.

Their meeting marked a big step toward the rapprochement between the two countries, after years of caution by the Emiratis, who view Iran as a national security threat.

Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who is Tahnoon’s brother, has long been concerned about a nuclear Iran, which was one of the factors that brought his country closer to Israel and led to the eventual Abraham Accords last year. He also built up the Emirati army in recent years to defend the country from the Iranian threat.

A meeting between Bennett and MBZ would allow the two leaders to have a serious tête-à-tête and for Bennett to ensure the countries’ relations stay on track, not only in relation to the Iranian threat but to other forms of UAE-Israel cooperation on defense, trade, health, technology and more.

A meeting with MBZ would be “a very important move by Bennett, because if the UAE feels both the US and Israel shifted, then the situation is not good,” Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs president Dore Gold said.

 Prime Minister Naftali Bennett at the cabinet meeting, November 28, 2021. (credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM/THE JERUSALEM POST)
Prime Minister Naftali Bennett at the cabinet meeting, November 28, 2021. (credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM/THE JERUSALEM POST)

 

“It may be close to too late” to head off the warming of UAE-Iran ties, “but it’s important that we try,” Gold said.

“In a period in which Israeli-Iranian relations are more problematic than ever, Israel needs a strong strategic partner in the Middle East, and the UAE is certainly that kind of a partner,” Gold asserted.

As reported by The Jerusalem Post