JERUSALEM — Israel announced that it would host a summit meeting on Sunday and Monday with the top diplomats from the United States, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Morocco.
Unimaginable half a decade ago, the high-level meeting reflects the pace at which Middle Eastern norms and alliances have shifted since Israel sealed landmark diplomatic agreements with the U.A.E., Bahrain and Morocco in 2020.
The Israeli foreign minister, Yair Lapid, will host the conference, which his ministry said on Friday would also be attended by Antony J. Blinken, the U.S. secretary of state; Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Emirati foreign minister; Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani, the Bahraini foreign minister; and Nasser Bourita, their Moroccan counterpart.
If it goes ahead as planned, the summit will be the first gathering of its kind on Israeli soil.
It will take place against the backdrop of the Ukraine war, which has increased international pressure on the U.A.E. to raise oil production to reduce the impact of a shortfall in Russian gas, and led to fears of food shortages in Morocco, which partly relies on grain imports from Russia and Ukraine.
Prime Minister Naftali Bennett of Israel has also played a key mediation role between the two sides.
The meeting will also occur as Western-led negotiations to persuade Iran to scale back its nuclear program continue.
Its timing reflects how shared fears of a nuclear Iran — as well as shared concerns about the perceived retreat of the United States from the region, and the opportunities afforded by greater economic ties between Israel and the Arab world — now seem to be a greater priority for several Arab governments than an immediate resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Israel was ostracized for years by all but two Arab countries, Egypt and Jordan, as much of the Arab world refused to normalize ties until the creation of a Palestinian state. But that changed in 2020, when Israel established diplomatic relations with the U.A.E. and Bahrain and reestablished them with Morocco.
