Rivlin says Arab states must follow UAE's lead in meeting with Kushner
“I call on other Arab and Muslim states to follow this path of friendship and to establish full and warm relations with the State of Israel – peace between nations and peoples, peace for peace.”
By AARON REICHWhite House adviser Jared Kushner is seen meeting with President Reuven Rivlin.(photo credit: MARK NEYMAN/GPO)
President Reuven Rivlin congratulated White House senior adviser Jared Kushner and other members of the US delegation on Sunday for the peace deal with the United Arab Emirates, and called on other Arab and Muslim nations to follow suit.“I call on other Arab and Muslim states to follow this path of friendship and to establish full and warm relations with the State of Israel – peace between nations and peoples, peace for peace,” the president said.Rivlin also praised the UAE's decision to end its boycott of Israel, explaining that “the decision is the beginning of normalization and creates many opportunities for cooperation.”The president concluded the meeting by wishing Kushner and his family a "shana tovah," or "happy new year," ahead of Rosh Hashanah.Rivlin made these statements ahead of Kusher's joint address to the press alongside Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US National Security Advisor Robert O'Brien.“We should take a moment to celebrate a historic breakthrough for peace,” Kushner said of Israel-UAE normalization. “It’s an accomplishment that does not happen often [and] did not happen easily.”The announcement also comes ahead of the first official flight from Israel to the UAE, on which Kushner will be flying on Monday alongside members of the US delegation, as well as an Israeli delegation led by National Security Adviser Meir Ben-Shabbat.Lahav Harkov contributed to this report.
