Since the formulation of the Abraham Accords and the development of initiatives for regional cooperation, we at the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS) have sought to convince Palestinian officials close to the Mukata'a in Ramallah that the Palestinian Authority can take part in them and achieve gains in various fields, including the economy, technology, energy, and the environment. Their answer, in all the existing channels of communication, is a decisive “no.”
The Palestinians firmly refuse to integrate into the regional normalization initiative, which gives legitimacy to Israel and tightens the relations between it and the Arab countries. For them, recognizing the normalization formulated without “being counted” by the Trump administration – the element likewise responsible for the "deal of the century" – is an act of betrayal.
American officials reported that in a meeting during President Biden’s recent visit to the Middle East, the US President presented a proposal to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to join regional initiatives. This was part of his attempt to leverage the developing cooperation between the United States' friends and allies in the region.
But Abbas, in his own way, did not respond to the offer (just as he did not respond at the time to the peace proposals of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Secretary of State John Kerry). According to Palestinians, Fatah and Hamas supporters alike, the Abraham Accords are intended to bypass the Palestinian issue and in effect remove it from the list of issues on the regional agenda. In their view, regional agreements are intertwined with another idea that they completely rebuff – economic peace – which is cast as an intention to offer them economic growth in exchange for renouncing the pursuit of sovereignty.
However, after many years of conflict with the Trump administration and a breakdown in relations with it, as well as disappointment with the Biden administration, which did not fulfill promises to reopen the American consulate in East Jerusalem and the PLO office in Washington, the PA officials expressed satisfaction with President Biden's visit. From their point of view, the peak of their success was the President's visit to East Jerusalem without an Israeli escort and Israeli flags, which was interpreted as non-recognition by the administration of Israel's sovereignty in the eastern portion of the city. In addition, they drew encouragement from President Biden's statement in his meeting with President Abbas regarding the administration's support for the two-state solution.
Furthermore, at the Jeddah conference, which was held with the participation of President Biden and the leaders of nine Arab countries – the six Gulf states along with Egypt, Jordan, and Iraq – all the participants emphasized the centrality of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the need to reach peace based on the June 4, 1967 borders and the Arab Peace Initiative as a condition for regional stability. Saudi Arabia, which hosted the summit, went so far as to clarify that it does not intend to reach full normalization with Israel (despite the low-profile cooperation between the countries) until the conflict is resolved. From the point of view of the Palestinian leadership, this is a fundamental and important achievement, after years in which the Palestinian issue was sidelined on the regional stage.
Will these achievements change the attitude of the Palestinian Authority and its leader Mahmoud Abbas regarding the calls to integrate into regional economic cooperation initiatives, which include Israel? For now, it seems that despite the expected changes, Abbas will reject the invitations and cling to his oppositional approach toward Israel, which is expressed, inter alia, in his threat to cancel the Palestinians’ recognition of Israel and the agreements between the PLO and Israel – that is, as long as the Israeli government refuses to discuss the two-state solution.
Since the formulation of the Abraham Accords and the development of initiatives for regional cooperation, we at the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS) have sought to convince Palestinian officials close to the Mukata'a in Ramallah that the Palestinian Authority can take part in them and achieve gains in various fields, including the economy, technology, energy, and the environment. Their answer, in all the existing channels of communication, is a decisive “no.”
The Palestinians firmly refuse to integrate into the regional normalization initiative, which gives legitimacy to Israel and tightens the relations between it and the Arab countries. For them, recognizing the normalization formulated without “being counted” by the Trump administration – the element likewise responsible for the "deal of the century" – is an act of betrayal.
American officials reported that in a meeting during President Biden’s recent visit to the Middle East, the US President presented a proposal to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to join regional initiatives. This was part of his attempt to leverage the developing cooperation between the United States' friends and allies in the region.
But Abbas, in his own way, did not respond to the offer (just as he did not respond at the time to the peace proposals of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Secretary of State John Kerry). According to Palestinians, Fatah and Hamas supporters alike, the Abraham Accords are intended to bypass the Palestinian issue and in effect remove it from the list of issues on the regional agenda. In their view, regional agreements are intertwined with another idea that they completely rebuff – economic peace – which is cast as an intention to offer them economic growth in exchange for renouncing the pursuit of sovereignty.
However, after many years of conflict with the Trump administration and a breakdown in relations with it, as well as disappointment with the Biden administration, which did not fulfill promises to reopen the American consulate in East Jerusalem and the PLO office in Washington, the PA officials expressed satisfaction with President Biden's visit. From their point of view, the peak of their success was the President's visit to East Jerusalem without an Israeli escort and Israeli flags, which was interpreted as non-recognition by the administration of Israel's sovereignty in the eastern portion of the city. In addition, they drew encouragement from President Biden's statement in his meeting with President Abbas regarding the administration's support for the two-state solution.
Furthermore, at the Jeddah conference, which was held with the participation of President Biden and the leaders of nine Arab countries – the six Gulf states along with Egypt, Jordan, and Iraq – all the participants emphasized the centrality of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the need to reach peace based on the June 4, 1967 borders and the Arab Peace Initiative as a condition for regional stability. Saudi Arabia, which hosted the summit, went so far as to clarify that it does not intend to reach full normalization with Israel (despite the low-profile cooperation between the countries) until the conflict is resolved. From the point of view of the Palestinian leadership, this is a fundamental and important achievement, after years in which the Palestinian issue was sidelined on the regional stage.
Will these achievements change the attitude of the Palestinian Authority and its leader Mahmoud Abbas regarding the calls to integrate into regional economic cooperation initiatives, which include Israel? For now, it seems that despite the expected changes, Abbas will reject the invitations and cling to his oppositional approach toward Israel, which is expressed, inter alia, in his threat to cancel the Palestinians’ recognition of Israel and the agreements between the PLO and Israel – that is, as long as the Israeli government refuses to discuss the two-state solution.