On Friday 11 September 2020 it was announced in a joint statement released by the Kingdom of Bahrain, the United States and Israel, that the Kingdom of Bahrain would enter into an agreement with Israel to establish full diplomatic relations between the two countries.
The joint statement described the agreement as a “historic breakthrough to further peace in the Middle East”, aimed to “open direct dialogue and ties” between the Kingdom of Bahrain and Israel.
This announcement follows the United Arab Emirates’ (“UAE”) agreement to normalise diplomatic relations with Israel under the agreement known as the Abraham Accord.
Since the announcement of the Abraham Accord, the UAE and Israel have taken proactive steps to start to meet the objectives of the Accord, including through the UAE’s announcement of the abolition of the Israel Boycott Law (Federal Law No. 15 of 1972) and the meeting of officials from both countries in the UAE, for the first time.
A signing ceremony will be held at the White House on 15 September 2020, where the UAE and Israel will formally sign the Abraham Accord. Following this latest announcement, the King and leader of Bahrain, his Majesty Hamad bin Isa bin Salman al-Khalifa has agreed to join the signing ceremony in Washington, where a separate agreement between the Kingdom of Bahrain and Israel will also be signed.
You can read our previous two updates on the Abraham Accord through the following links:
Presidential Decree introduced in the UAE to abolish the Israel Boycott Law
Key contacts
Stuart Paterson
Managing Partner, Middle East and Head of Middle East Dispute Resolution, Dubai
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