Posted in: 01/06/2022 – 12:53
On Tuesday, Israel and the UAE signed a free trade agreement in Dubai, the first of its kind between Tel Aviv and an Arab country, and the most important fruits of normalization of relations at the economic level between the two countries. According to the Israeli Foreign Ministry, 96 percent of customs duties will be exempted on all goods immediately or gradually, and the agreement is expected to increase the volume of trade between the two countries to more than ten billion dollars within five years.
In a move described as “historic”, the Israeli Minister of Economy and Industry Orna Barbivai and the UAE Minister of Economy Abdullah bin Touq Al-Marri on Tuesday signed a free trade agreement between Tel Aviv and Abu Dhabi, the first with an Arab country since normalization of relations.
In this context, the UAE Minister of State for Foreign Trade, Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, said in a tweet on Twitter that the agreement wrote “a new chapter in the history of the Middle East,” adding that it “will strengthen trade and investment relations between the two countries, accelerate growth and contribute to the beginning of an era in the Middle East.” new era of peace, stability and prosperity.
للمزيد: What can Israel and the UAE achieve from the free trade agreement?
It is expected that customs tariffs will be lifted on 96 percent of goods, and the UAE expects that the comprehensive economic partnership agreement will increase the volume of trade between the two countries to more than ten billion dollars within five years. It will also reduce tariffs on goods including food, medicine, diamonds, jewelry, fertilizers and other chemicals.
According to official Israeli data, the volume of Israeli-Emirati trade exchange amounted to $1.2 billion in 2021.
For her part, Barbivai said in a statement that the expected increase in trade exchange, the removal of obstacles, and the provision of opportunities for new companies and partnerships will form a “solid foundation for the joint path” of the UAE and Israel.
Dorian Barak, head of the UAE-Israel Business Council, said the trade agreement specified customs tariffs, imports and intellectual property rights, which would encourage more Israeli companies to open offices in the UAE, especially in Dubai.
The council expects that there will be 1,000 Israeli companies operating in or across the UAE by the end of the year and doing business with South Asia, the Far East and the Middle East.
Escalation of Israeli-Palestinian violence
The agreement was signed amid an escalation of Israeli-Palestinian violence, as the UAE Foreign Ministry condemned on Monday “extremist settlers storming the courtyard of the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque under the protection of Israeli forces.”
The ministry called on “the Israeli authorities to reduce the escalation and end a state of tension and congestion,” and stressed the importance of “exerting maximum restraint to avoid drifting to new levels of instability.”
On the same day, the invited media were informed that they might not attend the signing. No reason was given for this sudden change.
Economy Minister Barbivai told “Israel Today” radio that she had not heard “anything unusual” regarding the violence in the vicinity of Al-Aqsa Mosque so far during her visit.
Attempt to boost the economy
As for the UAE, the free trade agreement with Israel is the second bilateral agreement following it signed a similar agreement with India in February, and negotiations are underway with several other countries, including Indonesia and South Korea, to conclude other agreements.
The UAE is striving to conclude such agreements in an attempt to strengthen its economy following it was affected by the Corona virus pandemic.
It is noteworthy that the United Arab Emirates and Israel established official relations in September 2020 as part of an agreement brokered by the United States following decades of Arab policy calling for the establishment of a Palestinian state before establishing relations with Israel.
FRANCE 24/Archyde.com
