Ashkenazi calls on Palestinians to negotiate given UAE, Bahrain deals

“I call on the Palestinian leader to recognize reality and to act responsibly and with the same leadership as the UAE leaders, by returning to the negotiating table,” Ashkenazi said.

SEPTEMBER 15, 2020 12:38

Israel's Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi speaks during a joint news conference with his British counterpart Dominic Raab in Jerusalem August 25, 2020 (photo credit: MENAHEM KAHANA/POOL VIA REUTERS) — Israel's Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi speaks during a joint news conference with his British counterpart Dominic Raab in Jerusalem August 25, 2020

(photo credit: MENAHEM KAHANA/POOL VIA REUTERS)

Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi called on Palestinian to negotiate with Israel, in an exclusive interview he gave to the daily United Arab Emirates newspaper Al-Ittihad that was published on Tuesday.

“I call on the Palestinian leader to recognize reality and to act responsibly and with the same leadership as the UAE leaders, by returning to the negotiating table,” Ashkenazi said.

He spoke out in advance of Tuesday's anticipated historic signing in Washington of a peace treaty with the UAE and a declaration of normalized ties with Bahrain.

Once these documents are signed and ratified, Israel would have diplomatic ties with four Arab states, including Egypt which made peace with Israel in 1979 and Jordan which did so in 1994.

The last Israeli-Palestinian negotiating process ended in April 2014 without any results.

The Palestinians have rejected the Trump administration’s peace plan and have warned against normalized ties with Israel.

In speaking with the Emirati paper, Ashkenazi said the UAE and Bahraini agreements would lead to “significant change” not just for these countries but for the "entire Middle East” by contributing to "peace, stability and security.”

Ashkenazi said he had a vision in which “thousands of Israeli tourists and businessmen come to the Emirates to promote economic, commercial, technological and research collaborations while thousands of tourists from the Emirates and the Gulf states visit the beautiful beaches of Israel and the holy sites of the three religions."

He thanked UAE King Mohammed bin Salman for his role in the normalization of ties with Israel, a move that would “undoubtedly put him in the history books in a manner on par with world leaders who brought peace to their people.”

These agreements strengthen the understanding that the time has come to move forward and underscores the fact that “one must not remain stuck in the past,” Ashkenazi said.

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This has contributed “toward a better understanding of what is needed to achieve peace in the region,” he said.