Dear Reader, I wrote this article in the first week of Oct’20, after the Abrahamic accord was signed between Israel & UAE and Bahrain on Sep 20. The accord was a fundamental shift in the positions of middle east countries with respect to Israel. UAE is a Sunni nation with a standing army which has fought the Yemeni rebels in the civil war in Yemen side by side with Saudi Arabia. Bahrain is a vassal state of the Saudis. A peace accord by these two countries with their Publically declared arch-enemy; Israel should come as a surprise. But no one can be fooled, its guessed that Saudi Arabia is involved. The author believes that both the countries had a tacit approval of the Saudis before the accord was signed, egged on by the US.
The agreement is a historic diplomatic breakthrough that would advance peace in the Middle East region. This would not just serve the interest of the world but India too which has a huge stake in the middle east due to its cultural and trade tie-ups. Unlike the past two Arab-Israeli peace agreements, Palestinians do not figure prominently in the current one. The Palestinians are understandably upset. They called the UAE’s decision “treason”.
India’s geopolitical interests are in close alignment with stability in West Asia. Therefore, standing up for the region and opposing the forces of regional destabilisation should be at the very heart of India’s foreign policy in the region. In this context, India’s West Asia policy should be viewed with a new prism of shift in policy. India should strengthen its ties with all players in the region . India has been heavily dependent on energy supplies from the region, while Indian expatriates have constituted a substantial share of the regional labour market.
Very well summarised Sir. My views are ::
The agreement is a historic diplomatic breakthrough that would advance peace in the Middle East region. This would not just serve the interest of the world but India too which has a huge stake in the middle east due to its cultural and trade tie-ups. Unlike the past two Arab-Israeli peace agreements, Palestinians do not figure prominently in the current one. The Palestinians are understandably upset. They called the UAE’s decision “treason”.
India’s geopolitical interests are in close alignment with stability in West Asia. Therefore, standing up for the region and opposing the forces of regional destabilisation should be at the very heart of India’s foreign policy in the region. In this context, India’s West Asia policy should be viewed with a new prism of shift in policy. India should strengthen its ties with all players in the region . India has been heavily dependent on energy supplies from the region, while Indian expatriates have constituted a substantial share of the regional labour market.