September 15 the Date for UAE-Israel Signing Ceremony

Representatives from the United Arab Emirates and Israel will be gathering at the White House on September 15 to sign an agreement aimed at achieving full normalization between the two states. Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu will represent Israel, and Emirati Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan will sign on behalf of his brother, Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. US President Donald Trump announced the surprise agreement in the Oval Office on August 13. Israel has already sent a delegation to the UAE to begin discussions on normalization, using an El Al 737 in the first direct Israeli passenger flight between Tel Aviv and the Gulf nation. Saudi Arabia opened its airspace to shorten the flight, thereafter announcing that its skies would be open to any flight heading to or from the UAE. At the same time, Riyadh declared its intent to wait for peace between Israel and the Palestinians before embarking on normalization efforts of its own. One area of friction stemming from the Israel-UAE agreement is the sale of advanced F-35 stealth fighter jets to the Gulf nation, with officials from the UAE expressing displeasure over Netanyahu’s public stance against the move. There are also conflicting reports about whether he knew about the prospective sale and decided to react with professed surprise only when it was revealed in news reports.