Shortly after the historic announcement that Israel and the United Arab Emirates were normalizing relations, a high-ranking official in the Emirati Foreign Ministry said he believed one of the main issues for Abu Dhabi and Jerusalem would be the opening of embassies in each other's nations.
The official told Israel Hayom that he believed Israelis would be able to apply for travel visas to the Emirates at an embassy that would open in Israel three to five months from now.
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In the meantime, it appears as if the Emiratis intend not only to open an embassy, which will most likely be located in Tel Aviv, but also expand their diplomatic presence in Israel. According to a senior official in the UAE Foreign Ministry who reports directly to Foreign Minister Anwar Gargash, "The United Arab Emirates is considering opening a consulate in Israel that will work alongside the embassy and handle activity in the fields of Emirati culture, regional history, language, linguistics, and more."
Abu Dhabi would prefer that the consulate operate out of Nazareth, but Haifa is also an option because of the city's location. Recently, senior Israeli government officials, including Finance Minister Israel Katz, have acknowledged the Dubai Port company, which operates dozens of shipping ports around the world, is considering competing for the tender to operate the old Haifa Port.
"We aspire to a peace deal with the Jewish state, but peace is actually made with all Israelis, and it is very important to us to be available to the Arab population in Israel, which we see as an important partner for warm peace," the Emirati official explained.
"Based on various studies conducted through questionnaires and the data we have collected, it appears to us that there are information gaps among the Palestinian Arabs in Israel about the history of the United Arab Emirates and its role in the pan-Arab tapestry. We want our official consulate to be accessible to the Arab public in Israel, and Nazareth is certainly a leading candidate. Soon, we will decide how and when our diplomatic missions will open," he said.
Meanwhile, Arab media outlets continue to report that officials in Gulf states expect Bahrain to be the next Arab state to sign a peace deal with Israel. An official in the Saudi Foreign Ministry told Israel Hayom that although Saudi Arabia welcomes and supports the deal between Israel and the UAE and any deal that will follow, "Saudi Arabia will not at this stage join the countries signing peace deals with Israel."
The Saudi official added that "Saudi Arabia will not turn its back on the Arab peace plan of which it is the architect. The plan is based on Saudi Arabia and dozens of Arab and Muslim countries normalizing relations with Israel in exchange for [the establishment of] a Palestinian state along the 1967 borders, with east Jerusalem as its capital."
In addition, the Saudi official noted, "Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was involved at every stage of the deal between Israel and the Emirates. But as long as his father King Salman is alive, he will continue to stick to the Arab peace plan."
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