UAE minister calls Israel deal 'sovereign decision', says not directed to Iran

The United Arab Emirate’s minister of state for foreign affairs on August 17 said that the country’s agreement to normalise ties with Israel was a ‘sovereign decision’ and it was not directed at Iran. While taking to Twitter, Anwar Gargash condemned ‘threats’ by Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, who, a day earlier, had called the peace treaty a ‘betrayal’ and said that UAE made a ‘huge mistake’. However, Gargash said that UAE will ‘not accept interference in our decision’. 

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Speaking on August 15, Rouhani had said that UAE made a “huge mistake” by reaching an agreement with Israel to normalise their relationship. During a televised address, Rouhani termed the Abu Dhabi’s action as a “treacherous act” and warned them against allowing Israel a "foothold in the region”. 

Iran strongly condemned the US-brokered agreement between Israel and the United Arab Emirates and termed the agreement as an act of “strategic stupidity”. Iran’s Foreign Ministry said that it will further strengthen the Iran-backed “axis of resistance” which includes Syria, and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.

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Israel-UAE peace treaty 

On August 13, Israel and the United Arab Emirates along with the US released a joint statement that US President Donald Trump, Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu, and Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed agreed to the full normalisation of relations between UAE and Israel. While most nations welcomed the normalisation of relations between UAE and Israel, Iran, Turkey, Hamas, the de facto governing authority of the Gaza Strip, denounced the agreement raising concerns about the Palestinian cause.  

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