Dubai: UK Abraham Accords Group and Sharaka have signed a cooperation agreement at a private event at the Crossroads of Civilization Museum in Dubai.
Signing on behalf of the UK Abraham Accords Group was The Rt Hon Dr Liam Fox MP, former UK Secretary of State for Defense and former UK Secretary of State for International Trade, and the group’s executive Director, Laura Roberts.
The UK Abraham Accords group is a non-partisan, non-profit UK organisation dedicated to supporting the implementation and expansion of the historic peace agreements in the Middle East known as the Abraham Accords. The Rt Hon Dr Fox MP was appointed to his position by the UAE, Bahrain and Israeli ambassadors to the UK.
Dr Fox is leading a delegation of British MP’s to see first-hand the impact the Abraham Accords is making on trade and industry, religious, and cultural cooperation.
Signing on behalf of Sharaka was Amit Deri, Israeli co-founder and CEO; and its Emirati co-founder and UAE CEO, Dr Majid Al Sarrah. Offering remarks were Dr Fox and Dr Al Sarrah. Also offering remarks were Ahmed AL Mansoori, founder of the Museum.
In attendance were Mansoor Abulhoul, UAE Ambassador to the UK, along with the UK delegation, senior members and activists from Sharaka, including Global Affairs Director Dan Feferman, US CEO Omar Al Busaidy; and Media and Academic Advisor, Dr Najat Al Saeed, as well as senior figures from the diplomatic community, UAE government and policy community, and leading members of the UAE’s Jewish community.
About Sharaka
Sharaka, which means ‘partnership’, is a non-profit, non-partisan organisation founded by young leaders from Israel and the Gulf to turn the vision of people-to-people peace into a reality and encourage citizen diplomacy. The mission of Sharaka is to build and strengthen the bonds between Israelis and the citizens of the Abraham Accords countries, to ensure the success and resilience of the governmental agreements, and encourage additional countries of the benefits of joining the accords.
It brought the first cultural delegations from the Gulf to Israel, from Israel to the Gulf, and joint Arab-Israeli delegations to the US. Shakara hosted the first Arab world virtual Holocaust memorial and learning event, and regularly holds joint events in the UAE, Israel, Morocco and Bahrain, and also online is celebrating each country and each religion’s holidays, as well as other cultural events.
Shared goals
The UK Abraham Accords Group and Sharaka agree to mutually promote the economic and cultural ties among the Abraham Accords countries and identify and pursue ways to build upon the Accords in the Middle East. Furthermore, these organisations will work to expand awareness of the Accords and their positive impact in the UK.
Together, the UK Abraham Accords Group and Sharaka will work to identify influencers from the Abraham Accords countries in the media, society, academia, business, and other fields and bring them on mutual visits – Israelis to the Arab world, people from the Arab world to Israel, and joint delegations to the UK. They will follow up by seeking areas for regional cooperation in a variety of fields.
Both sides will work together to measure the impact of the new cooperation between Israel and the Abraham Accords countries; identify and pursue areas of cooperation between the countries; work to build multi-lateral forums in the region on issues of shared importance; help communicate the importance and benefits of the accords to a broader audience regionally and in the UK; and participate in each other’s events to help continue promoting the accords and their expansion in the Middle East.
Dr Fox said: “The UK Abraham Accords Group is pleased to work with Sharaka. Both of our organisations are committed to furthering the goals of the Abraham Accords, and promote peace and prosperity in the Middle East. We hope that through this new partnership we will make an impact beyond borders and spread the message of peace to all.”
Al Sarrah said: “The Abraham Accords continue to prosper and prove that they offer a sustainable and successful peace model. Sharaka took the lead among non-governmental groups to bring people together in the name of peace and the desire to build a bright future. It soothes the heart to see Sharaka signing significant agreements with such an important and influential group from the UK [and previously from the US], which will result in helping bolster the peace model and push it forward.”
Deri said: “We are honoured to be signing this agreement with to promote the common purpose of further promoting the Abraham Accords and the new model for peace and partnership in the Middle East. While our countries’ leadership bravely signed the accords, the active support of the international community is critical. We are glad to see the UK taking a more active role in encouraging this process, and look forward to working with the UK Abraham Accords Group and Dr Liam Fox MP, a long-time supporter of peace and moderation in the region. This approach proves that boycotts and war are not the way forward, but rather dialogue and cooperation.”
