Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu didn’t welcome the civics lesson by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken at a press conference in Israel last week, but he’ll pocket a big win on Iran, and a so-so win on Sudan, which outweigh the friction on other issues during the visit.
The US-Israeli-Palestinian diplomatic fire drill to de-escalate yet another round of violence. The appeals to both sides to avoid inflammatory unilateral actions and resume security coordination, the aspirational references to a two-state solution — it all has a familiar rhythm. Netanyahu, and the Biden team, are on well-worn if unwelcome terrain.
This is not to dismiss the potential consequences for a big blowup, especially if anything threatens the historic status quo at Jerusalem’s Haram al-Sharif/Temple Mount and Jordan’s special role in this regard. Netanyahu gets it, but his control over events is not iron-clad.
Israel Foreign Minister Eli Cohen flew to Khartoum this week to advance the normalization process, which he hopes to conclude by the end of the year.
Sudan is the elusive fourth Arab party to the September 2020 Abraham Accords, which also include the UAE, Bahrain and Morocco. Closing the deal with Khartoum has been a slog, as Sudan's military takeover has undercut a once-promising democratic turnaround and the prospect of international assistance for its fragile economy.
In return for agreeing to normalize ties with Israel, the Trump administration removed Sudan from the foreign sponsors of terrorism list, and Gulf states chipped in to pay off the country’s massive debt. These moves allowed Sudan to receive assistance under the World Bank’s Heavily Indebted Poor Countries Initiative (HIPC), but the assistance has since been complicated by the coup.
For Netanyahu, rekindling Sudan as a member of the Abraham Accords serves to remind the world of his bona fides as peacemaker, given the fires on the home front.
Source: Al Monitor