In commemorating the 4th anniversary of the signing of the Abraham Accords, which paved a way forward for unprecedented cooperation between Israel and Arab nations, the bipartisan Senate Abraham Accords Caucus underscored recently, “In the face of increased Iranian aggression, the foundation of this agreement is more important than ever to further cooperation in the region to deter threats from Tehran and its proxies.”
Indeed, since their inception in September 2020, when then-President Donald Trump institutionalized the bilateral pacts between Israel and the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Morocco, the Abraham Accords have yielded concrete steps forward.
Specifically, the agreements between Israel and the UAE and Israel and Bahrain unambiguously marked the beginning of a transformative, constructive chapter for a region that must and will continue to be vital to America’s interests in the national security and economic dimensions. The accords have remained intact over the past four years while serving as a positive realignment in the region that unites Israel and its neighbors against common enemies.
The Senate caucus statement further noted that “as we celebrate four years since this historic signing, the U.S. should continue building on the accords by bringing our partners together, helping advance prospects for peace, restoring prosperity in the region, and widening the circle of partnership to new countries.”
The Abraham Accords Peace Institute’s latest annual report assessed that despite the grave challenges triggered by Hamas’ Oct. 7 massacre in Israel and the ensuing Israel-Hamas war, “diplomatic and trade ties remained steady, with the leaderships of Abraham Accords countries affirming their continued commitment to the accords. Accords countries were able to leverage the trust built with Israel.”
It is notable that accumulated trade between Israel and the Abraham Accords countries exceeded $4 billion in 2023, which is “a testimony both to the real case for trade between Israel and neighboring countries and to the resilience of the Accords, even in the face of war and geopolitical tensions,” according to the report.
Israel’s bilateral trade with the accords countries has also continued to grow in 2024. Compared to the same period in 2023, trade with Bahrain in the first seven months of 2024 was up over 900%, and with Morocco, by more than 55%, according to the Abraham Accords Peace Institute.
The accords can be the best practical example of what Washington’s relationship with Jerusalem and the region can look like when the United States can exercise its leadership.
Continuing to pave the path forward with greater commitments for previously impossible Israeli-Arab cooperation as well as increased engagements with the United States matter more than ever in ensuring that the accords move the geopolitical direction toward a better future for the region.
Clearly, now is not the time to discount that critical, evolving process of the Abraham Accords—or worse, to abandon our commitment to the accords. The agreements have raised the real prospects of peace and stability in the region to the highest point in many decades, and that must go on.
Selling short the historic accords at this critical juncture would be an immensely unwise move in the long run. Abandoning the accords also wouldn’t help Palestinians in Gaza, which Hamas governs. In fact, it would do the exact opposite, confining the Palestinian people to the same trap of corrupt and oppressive governance that thrives only by ensuring that peace fails.
It is encouraging that Israel’s Arab partners “remain committed to strategic choice,” as reported by the Times of Israel, although “the overall visibility of its ties with Bahrain, Morocco, and the UAE has changed since Hamas’ attacks on Oct. 7.”
Robert Greenway, director of The Heritage Foundation’s Center for National Defense, who also helped negotiate the accords and serves the Abraham Accords Peace Institute as a board member, succinctly summed up the imperative of preserving and enhancing the accords in a recent commentary, pointing out:
Despite all these challenges, the accords endure. They endure because the promise of peace and prosperity remains strong and can be resurrected. To fulfill that promise, renew, and even expand the Abraham Accords—including via the addition of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia—it is vital to discard false assumptions and the poor policies they produce.
… In the end, the world has seen two competing visions for the Middle East, and their results are self-evident. President Trump successfully confronted America’s adversaries and built an enduring peace between Israel and its Arab neighbors. The Biden-Harris administration has appeased our enemies and abandoned our allies, leaving the Middle East in flames. It’s not too late to choose peace.
Indeed, as the Abraham Accords moves onward, now is the time to uphold their renewed importance. That will be the true celebration of the accords’ 4th anniversary and beyond.