Turkish president Tayyip Erdogan has announced that he is breaking off all diplomatic relation with the UAE after the Gulf nations signed an agreement establishing formal relations with Israel.
On Thursday, the UAE declared that it had agreed to set up diplomatic relation with Israel in exchange for a suspension of Israel plan to occupy the West Bank. first, only Egypt and Jordan among the Arab nations have had diplomatic relations with Israel, and now the encouraged UAE for the agreement.
Erdogan and his government have been vocal critics of Israel’s treatment of Palestinians over the years. Shortly after the UAE-Israel accord was announced, Turkey’s Foreign Ministry said that “history and the conscience of the region’s peoples will not forget and never forgive this hypocritical behavior of the UAE, betraying the Palestinian cause for the sake of its narrow interests.”
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, meanwhile, praised the accord with Abu Dhabi as “the greatest advancement toward peace between Israel and the Arab world in the last 26 years.” He confirmed that Israel would delay the planned annexation of the West Bank, but said that this option will remain on the table.
