INSS, together with Think Tanks from the United States and the United Arab Emirates, Offers Policy Recommendations to the Biden Administration
February 1, 2021
With the entry of President Biden into the White House, the Atlantic Council (Washington, D.C.), the Emirates Policy Center (Abu Dhabi), and the Institute for National Security Studies (Tel Aviv) presented a policy memo to the new administration, entitled “How President Biden Can Tackle the Middle East’s Biggest Problems”. The memo presents guidelines for US policy in the Middle East, while taking into account the interests of the different regional allies.
The memo lists nine recommendations that the Biden administration can implement within its first six months. These recommendations, formulated by the think tanks to promote the joint interests of the three countries, seek to improve regional stability, strengthen the regional coalition aligned with the US, and encourage steps to minimize the power of destabilizing elements, led by Iran. The recommendations refer to steps that preserve the leading role of the United States in the region; improve the coordination mechanisms between the US and its regional allies, especially on issues relating to Iran; suggest, in light of the administration’s intent to return to the JCPOA, what issues must be addressed; advance military and civilian cooperation to promote prosperity and stability; and support and encourage additional normalization accords between Israel and Arab states.
The think tanks that authored the memo launched a partnership on research collaboration after the normalization accords between the United Arab Emirates and Israel were signed with the support of the United States. The trilateral cooperation, inspired by the Abraham Accords, reflects a new era in the Middle East and a new position for Israel in the region. The three institutes agreed to organize joint research programs and events, and decided to prepare periodic policy memos for the governments of the respective three countries.