meed-logo

line1 line2 line3
SIGN IN / REGISTER

Gaza conflict tests UAE-Israel ties

13 June 2024

 

The stance of the UAE towards Israel has cooled dramatically in the past eight months amid the conflict in Gaza, which is proving to be a major test of the partnership built between Abu Dhabi and Tel Aviv.

From boasting of warm and open trade dealings, the UAE has gone quiet on its business deals with Israeli partners, while on a political and diplomatic level the humanitarian tragedy in Gaza has increasingly drawn condemnatory statements from UAE officials.

It is a twist in developments that neither country could have foreseen, as nor indeed had Saudi Arabia, which was nearing its own normalisation agreement with Israel. It has also taken a bilateral strategic partnership that was long in the making into uncertain territory.

Long-term partnership

The 2020 Abraham Accords that normalised relations between the UAE and Israel came at the tail end of at least a decade’s worth of interaction between the two countries. The agreement emerged first and foremost as a set of shared strategic interests in opposition to regional threats in the early 2010s.

In a very tangible interaction in 2016, pilots from the UAE and Israel for the first time participated together in aerial combat training exercises hosted by the United States Air Force (USAF) in Nevada.

The UAE’s relationship with Israel also intersects with its relationship with the US, including its hope of securing access to advanced US military technology and assets, such as the F-35 Stealth Fighter Jet.

In September 2020, UAE foreign ministry spokesperson Hend Al-Otaiba stated that a request for the F-35 had been made six years previously, and that, “given that the UAE intends to be a partner to Israel, and already has a deep strategic partnership with the US, we are hopeful the request will be granted”.

While the sale of the F-35 by the US to the UAE has yet to materialise, relations between the UAE and Israel have nonetheless thrived on their own since the accords, on the basis of ongoing shared security interests and the opportunities for business, trade and investment between the two countries.

Since 2020, the value of trade between the UAE and Israel has swollen to about $3bn annually, and defence ties have only strengthened. In 2022, Israel supplied the UAE with air defence systems following long-range attacks on the UAE's oil infrastructure by the Iran-aligned Houthi movement in Yemen.

Israel-Palestine problems

It was as early as June 2023, however, that US Secretary of State Antony Blinken first warned that rising tensions in Palestine and Israel’s actions in the West Bank could imperil the process of normalisation.

With the advent of the war in Gaza, those fears of a damaging escalation in tensions have been realised.

As the conflict erupted in October, the UAE kept its distance and restricted itself to only the most limited commentary, condemning the “serious and grave escalation” by Hamas-led militants while calling for the full protection of all civilians under international humanitarian law.

By November, as the violence in Gaza ratcheted up, Abu Dhabi similarly affirmed its commitment to the accords even as individual UAE officials publicly condemned Israel’s actions and called for an end to the violence, pushing for a ceasefire, humanitarian aid and the release of hostages.

Anwar Gargash, a diplomatic adviser to the president, labelled the conflict a “profound setback” for the region, and stressed that the tragic course of events should lead to a political re-engagement on the issues of realising a two-state solution with East Jerusalem as its capital.

The close working relationship between the UAE and Israel nevertheless continued, as evidenced by Israel’s acquiescence to Abu Dhabi’s humanitarian efforts in Gaza, which have included the UAE setting up a field hospital and performing aerial aid drops in the territory.

The long grind of the conflict and the increasing inflexibility and intransigence on ceasefire negotiations by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have nevertheless steadily eroded this early good will.

While in early January, Gargash affirmed that the normalisation agreement was “a strategic decision, and strategic decisions are long-term”, by late January, senior UAE officials were ringing alarm bells.

Four months on, speaking at the Arab Media Forum in Dubai in late May, Gargash lambasted the conflict in Gaza as having taken on “brutal and inhuman dimensions”, stating that the “heinous attack in Gaza and Rafah cannot be overlooked” – a far more critical tone than his earlier conciliatory speech.

Unreliable partner

On the international stage, the disinclination of the Israeli government to listen to any of its key allies or partners has been trying for all, including the US. For Israel’s normalised partners in the Middle East, the conflict has underscored the tension between the Abraham Accords and underlying regional sentiments.

The UAE’s own founding father, Sheikh Zayed, was an ardent personal supporter of the Palestinian cause, and under his watch, the UAE was one of the first states to recognise Palestine as an independent state.

In the present, the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza is drawing the competing influences of the UAE’s contemporary strategic interests and underlying sympathy for the Palestinian people into stark relief, and it is having a chilling effect on relations.

Public announcements in the UAE of deals with Israeli companies, which abounded before the conflict, have evaporated, and at least one very public deal has been put on hold amid the uncertainty.

Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) had been due to take a $2bn stake, alongside the UK’s BP, in Israeli gas producer NewMed, which holds 45% of Israel’s Leviathan offshore gas field.

In mid-May, Netanyahu suggested that the UAE could be involved in the governance of Gaza – drawing a swift rejection from UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, who stated: “The UAE refuses to be drawn into any plan aimed at providing cover for the Israeli presence in the Gaza Strip.”

The episode was a stark demonstration of the breakdown in communication and diplomatic alignment between Abu Dhabi and Tel Aviv, and it joins a wider pattern of reports that UAE officials are already looking beyond Netanyahu and cultivating relations with his potential successors.

On 5 June, the UAE’s foreign minister again condemned the Israeli government after it allowed the divisive annual ‘Flag March’ of Israeli settlers through Jerusalem’s old city, as well as settler activism in the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, despite the extraordinarily heightened tensions over Gaza.

For UAE-Israel ties to thrive, Abu Dhabi needs a government partner in Tel Aviv that it can work with on a productive basis to safeguard interests between the two countries while avoiding diplomatic affronts.

Unfortunately for the UAE, the current Israeli government – with the far-right ministers that Netanyahu has brought into the cabinet – has had a habit of proving itself to be the very antithesis of such a partner.

Looking ahead, it could be a long road for UAE-Israel ties to return to resembling their halcyon state of 2021-22, and it will take a government in Israel under someone other than Netanyahu to get there.

https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/11898933/main.gif
John Bambridge

Register for MEED's guest program now to access this article.

Click here to register
Exclusive from Meed
Related Articles
  • Miral moves Harry Potter theme park bid deadline Yasir Iqbal

    29 July 2025

     

    Abu Dhabi’s Miral has extended the bid submission deadline for a tender to build a Harry Potter-themed expansion at the Warner Bros World Yas Island entertainment destination in Abu Dhabi.

    Earlier this month, MEED exclusively reported that the tender for the estimated AED2bn-AED3bn ($545m-$816m) main construction works had been issued to contractors, with bids initially due on 28 July.

    Miral has extended the bid submission deadline until 4 August, according to sources.

    The scope of the Warner Bros World phase two expansion includes adding 40,000 square metres (sq m) to the existing theme park. This will include a Harry Potter-themed zone with three new rides, retail outlets, and food and beverage facilities.

    Enabling works for the project have begun and are being undertaken by local firm NSCC International. Another local firm, Emirates Electrical & Instrumentation Company, is carrying out the early works.

    Canadian engineering firm EllisDon is the project consultant, and French firm Egis is the lead designer.

    According to media reports, the Abu Dhabi project will be the world’s sixth Harry Potter-themed park. The others are in Florida and California in the US, Beijing in China, Osaka in Japan and Leavesden in the UK.

    The Abu Dhabi project was first announced in November 2022.

    Yas Waterworld

    Miral has developed a series of theme parks and other entertainment-related attractions on Yas Island, working with several local and international contractors.

    On 1 July, Miral opened a new 16,900 sq m expansion of its Yas Waterworld park to the public.

    The expansion added 3.3 kilometres of slide sections to the park. The addition of 18 new rides and attractions, bringing the total number of rides to more than 60, is expected to increase visitor capacity by 20%.

    Construction was carried out by local contractor Alec.

    Disney park

    In May, The Walt Disney Company and Miral signed an agreement to build a Disney theme park resort on Yas Island.

    Disney, which is based in the US, said the Abu Dhabi site will be its seventh theme park resort. The others are in California and Florida in the US, Paris in France, Hong Kong and Shanghai in China, and Tokyo in Japan.

    In a statement, Disney noted that the UAE is located within a four-hour flight of one-third of the world’s population, making it a significant gateway for tourism. It is also home to one of the world's busiest airline hubs, with 120 million passengers travelling through Abu Dhabi and Dubai each year.

    The Disney theme park resort in Abu Dhabi will include entertainment areas, themed accommodations, dining venues and retail experiences.

    In 2023, Miral opened SeaWorld Abu Dhabi, also on Yas Island. Alec was the contractor for the estimated $565m project.

    In 2018, Miral opened the Warner Bros theme park on Yas Island. Belgium’s Besix was the contractor for the estimated $531m project.

    Other Miral projects have included the Etihad Arena and the indoor climbing and skydive centre Clymb. Bam International of the Netherlands was the contractor for the arena and Germany’s Zublin was the contractor for Clymb.

    Yas Island was launched as a project in 2006 by local developer Aldar Properties. The original centrepiece attractions were the Yas Marina Circuit, which hosts Formula 1 motor racing’s annual Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, and the Ferrari World theme park.

    READ THE AUGUST 2025 MEED BUSINESS REVIEW – click here to view PDF

    Gulf heads into a new era of aviation; Maghreb’s resilience rises despite global pressures; GCC banks expand issuance amid demand

    Distributed to senior decision-makers in the region and around the world, the August 2025 edition of MEED Business Review includes:

    > MAGHREB MARKET FOCUS: Maghreb pushes for stability
    To see previous issues of MEED Business Review, please click here
    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/14358463/main.jpg
    Yasir Iqbal
  • Aviation competition grows Colin Foreman

    29 July 2025

    Commentary
    Colin Foreman
    Editor

    Read the August issue of MEED Business Review

    On 17 April, Istanbul airport became the first airport outside of the US to commence triple runway operations, which means the airport now supports simultaneous take-offs and landings on three runways.

    Hourly air traffic capacity has increased from 120 to 148 movements an hour, enhancing Istanbul airport’s competitiveness as a global aviation hub. 

    Along with the rapidly expanding Turkish Airlines, the airport – which aims to ultimately have a capacity of 200 million passengers a year – has established itself as a key player in the global aviation market. This puts it in competition with the airports and airlines of the Gulf, which vie for much of the same transit business. 

    As the competition grows, Dubai is expanding its own airport capacity. In May 2024, it relaunched the $33bn Al-Maktoum International airport expansion, which eventually aims to cater to 260 million passengers a year. 

    The plan is for the airport to replace the existing Dubai International airport, giving Dubai much greater capacity. Dubai Aviation Engineering Projects, which is overseeing the construction of the airport, says arrivals capacity will be quadrupled to 160 movements an hour and departure capacity increased over fivefold to 200 movements an hour.

    Saudi Arabia has emerged as an ambitious and well-funded challenger

    Dubai also faces competition from within the region. It already competes with transit hubs in Doha, Abu Dhabi, Bahrain and Muscat, and now Saudi Arabia has emerged as an ambitious and well-funded challenger for the future. In Riyadh, the plan is to expand the existing King Khalid International airport to become King Salman International airport, which aims to accommodate up to 120 million passengers by 2030 and 185 million by 2050.

    Both the Al-Maktoum and King Salman airport projects are now moving into construction, with a series of key appointments across both projects this year. As competition in global aviation grows, the pressure to deliver these projects will build.

    READ THE AUGUST 2025 MEED BUSINESS REVIEW – click here to view PDF

    Gulf heads into a new era of aviation; Maghreb’s resilience rises despite global pressures; GCC banks expand issuance amid demand

    Distributed to senior decision-makers in the region and around the world, the August 2025 edition of MEED Business Review includes:

    > MAGHREB MARKET FOCUS: Maghreb pushes for stability
    To see previous issues of MEED Business Review, please click here
    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/14358206/main.gif
    Colin Foreman
  • Iraq to tender Europe road packages by the end of 2025 Yasir Iqbal

    29 July 2025

    Iraq has announced that it expects to float the first tenders by the end of this year for the Development Road project, which will link Iraq to Europe via Turkiye.

    Local media reports quoted Maytham Safi, information director at Iraq’s Transport Ministry, as saying: “The project comprises 15 industrial and economic zones and will be offered in several packages to the market.”

    Safi added that the initial designs for the project have been completed, and that it is now in the detailed design phase.

    In March, MEED reported that design work on the rail component of the project is expected to be completed by August.

    Iraq signed an agreement with Italy’s BTP Infrastrutture in November 2024 for the preparation of the technical and economic feasibility study and design of the first phase of the rail element of the project, which also includes a parallel motorway.

    In January, Iraqi officials met a delegation from the World Bank to discuss the scope of financing arrangements for the multibillion-dollar Development Road project.

    The officials discussed the bank’s support for rehabilitating the existing railway linking southern Iraq to the north, and onwards to Turkiye, as part of the Development Road project.

    The project includes a 1,200-kilometre railway and a highway linking Iraq’s Faw port to Europe via Turkiye. It is expected to cost about $17bn.

    In August last year, Turkiye announced that it would hold a meeting with officials from Iraq, Qatar and the UAE to discuss the project. This followed the signing of a memorandum of understanding in April to establish a framework for its implementation.

    In May, it was announced that Iraq’s Transport Ministry had appointed US-based management consulting firm Oliver Wyman to provide consultancy services for the project.

    Development road project

    The Development Road project forms part of Iraq’s efforts to improve its geopolitical status as a new trade corridor and generate fresh sources of financial income, reducing the country’s reliance on hydrocarbons.

    It involves the development of a 1,200km road and a dual rail line for passenger and cargo trains.

    According to the plan, the road project will begin at Faw port, pass through 10 governorates and end at Faysh Khabur on the border of Iraq and Turkiye, before connecting to Turkish railway and highway networks.

    By 2028, the freight network’s transport capacity is expected to reach 3.5 million containers and 22 million tonnes of bulk cargo annually, according to an official statement by Younis Khaled, director general of the General Company for Iraqi Railways.

    This is expected to increase to 7.5 million containers and 33 million tonnes of cargo by 2038, and to about 40 million tonnes of cargo by 2050.

    The initial capacity of the high-speed train is expected to be 13.8 million passengers a year.

    READ THE AUGUST 2025 MEED BUSINESS REVIEW – click here to view PDF

    Gulf heads into a new era of aviation; Maghreb’s resilience rises despite global pressures; GCC banks expand issuance amid demand

    Distributed to senior decision-makers in the region and around the world, the August 2025 edition of MEED Business Review includes:

    > MAGHREB MARKET FOCUS: Maghreb pushes for stability
    To see previous issues of MEED Business Review, please click here
    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/14358142/main.jpg
    Yasir Iqbal
  • Read the August 2025 MEED Business Review MEED Editorial

    29 July 2025

    Download / Subscribe / 14-day trial access

    The world’s two largest airport construction projects are taking shape in the heart of the GCC, highlighting the region’s bold ambitions to lead global aviation.

    Topping the list, according to UK-based analytics firm GlobalData, is Dubai’s Al-Maktoum International airport, followed closely by Riyadh’s King Salman International airport.

    These massive undertakings not only reflect the sheer scale of investment in infrastructure but also signal the GCC’s strategic push to solidify its status as a premier global travel hub.

    With air travel bouncing back strongly post-Covid, 2024 data shows passenger traffic at many airports reaching – or even surpassing – pre-pandemic levels. This momentum has carried into 2025 and is expected to fuel continued growth in the years ahead.

    Our August issue Agenda section takes an in-depth look at the giant airports being built in the UAE and Saudi Arabia. While these airports are making headlines, we also explore the quieter but equally significant story unfolding elsewhere: the substantial investments being made in expanding airport infrastructure across the broader region. 

    This month’s Maghreb market focus covers Algeria, Libya, Morocco and Tunisia, and finds that resilience is key as the region navigates complex political and economic dynamics.

    MEED's latest issue also includes a comprehensive Gulf banking report. Despite global volatility and tightening liquidity, regional institutions continue to expand assets and profits. Read more here. 

    This issue is packed with analysis. We investigate Syria's fragile security situation; outline the construction plans at Saudi Arabia's Soudah Peaks; find out why plastic is not the enemy; and present a 14-page special report on MEED's Mena Banking Excellence Corporate & Investment Awards.

    In the August issue, the team also speaks exclusively to several executives from Sets about how the firm is playing a crucial role in ensuring heritage is integrated into Saudi Arabia’s rapid development. 

    We hope our valued subscribers enjoy the August 2025 issue of MEED Business Review. 

     

    Must-read sections in the August 2025 issue of MEED Business Review include:

    > AGENDA: 
    > Middle East invests in giant airports
    > Broader region upgrades its airports
    > Global air travel shifts east

    > CURRENT AFFAIRS:
    > Syria wrestles fragile security situation

    INDUSTRY REPORT:
    GCC banks 
    > Gulf banks navigate turbulent times

    > BANKING: Strategic planning enters a new era of volatility

    > CONSTRUCTION: Soudah Peaks outlines project construction plans

    > INTERVIEW: SETS leads Saudi heritage preservation charge

    > LEADERSHIP: From plastic leakage to leadership in the Gulf

    > MAGHREB MARKET REPORT: 
    > COMMENT: Maghreb pushes for stability
    > GOVERNMENT: Pursuit of political stability dominates Maghreb
    > ECONOMY: Maghreb economies battle trading headwinds
    > OIL & GAS: Oil company interest in Libya increases 
    > INDUSTRY: Algeria’s industrial strategy builds momentum
    > POWER & WATER: Slow year for Maghreb power and water awards
    > CONSTRUCTION: World Cup 2030 galvanises Morocco construction
    > DATABANK: Maghreb economies stabilise

    > MEED COMMENTS: 
    > Riyadh Expo appointments are the launchpad for construction
    > Dubai South real estate faces airport noise concerns
    > Aramco offshore contract awards set to rebound
    > Latest Iraq oil supply deal will test Baghdad

    > GULF PROJECTS INDEX: Gulf projects maintain growth streak

    > JUNE 2025 CONTRACTS: Activity picks up but fails to reach 2024 levels

    > ECONOMIC DATA: Data drives regional projects

    > OPINION: The economics of long war

    > BUSINESS OUTLOOK: Finance, oil and gas, construction, power and water contracts

    To see previous issues of MEED Business Review, please click here
    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/14351570/main.gif
    MEED Editorial
  • Egypt gas project impacted by delays to refinery project Wil Crisp

    29 July 2025

     

    An Egyptian Natural Gas Company (Gasco) expansion project named the Egas Energy Efficiency Project is expected to be impacted by delays related to issues with the Assiut oil refinery upgrade project, according to sources.

    The project focuses on upgrading the Dahshour compression station and includes the installation of new compressor trains. It is estimated to be worth about $1bn and is made up of four separate packages.

    The package known as Lot 1 is worth $300m and is currently scheduled to come online either later this year or early next year.

    One source said: “The project has made good progress and theoretically should be able to come online this year, but problems related to issues at the Assiut oil refinery project are causing complications that could delay this coming online.”

    The scope of the Lot 1 package includes:

    • Construction of a fifth gas turbine-driven compressor train with a capacity of 326 million standard cubic feet a day (cf/d)
    • Construction of a sixth gas turbine-driven compressor train with a capacity of 163 million standard cf/d
    • Installation of an organic rankine cycle system
    • Installation of a power plant with a capacity of 12MW
    • Installation of generators
    • Construction of associated facilities

    A separate Gasco project to develop a fourth production train at Egypt’s Western Desert gas complex in Amriya is now scheduled to come online next year, amid concerns about whether the facility will have access to the required volumes of natural gas.

    Egypt is struggling to meet domestic demand for natural gas, and earlier this year, it had to halt production at several industrial facilities due to gas shortages.

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/14352377/main.gif
    Wil Crisp