The UAE and Israel agreed to allow visa-free travel and formed a private sector-led investment fund as ministers from the two countries signed deals in Tel Aviv on Tuesday.
The $3 billion Abraham Fund was set up by the two countries, along with the US International Development Finance Corporation, on the first ministerial visit after the two countries established diplomatic ties.
Abdulla bin Touq, Minister of Economy, and Obaid Al Tayer, Minister of State for Financial Affairs, were on an Etihad Airways plane that touched down at Ben Gurion Airport outside Tel Aviv at 1pm UAE time on Tuesday.
They were accompanied by US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Middle East envoy Ari Berkowitz, who were in Abu Dhabi for talks on Monday.
We are committed to supporting a legal framework for the movement of people and goods between the UAE and the state of Israel
The delegation was welcomed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Mr Netanyahu said the two countries would have reciprocal visa-free travel, a move that makes Emirati citizens the first in the Arab world to not require Israeli entry permits.
“Today, we are making history. We are making history in a way that will stand for generations,” he said in a ceremony held on the tarmac.
“We will remember this day, a glorious day of peace.”
The countries will open a development office in Israel to identify and initiate projects that boost economic growth, improve standards of living and create high-value jobs.
Mr Al Tayer said the two sides would also discuss financial co-operation and trade to strengthen their economies. and that an agreement would be signed on double taxation.
He said the deals had many benefits for the two countries.
“We are committed to supporting a legal framework for the movement of people and goods between the UAE and the state of Israel, to achieve prosperity for both of our people and economies,” Mr Al Tayer said.
“It has been a pleasure being with you all today. We look forward to welcoming you to the UAE in the near future.”
Earlier, the Israeli government said agreements on aviation, investment protection, visa exemptions and science and technology would be signed.
A deal authorising 28 commercial flights a week between the countries was due to be signed yesterday.
The UAE announced its decision to normalise relations with Israel in August. Known as the Abraham Accord, the agreement was signed at a White House event last month.
Since then, the two countries have struck several commercial deals.
A key tenet of the accord was the assurance from Israel that it would suspend the annexation of Palestinian territory, including the occupied West Bank and Jordan Valley.
The UAE is the third Arab country to sign a peace deal with Israel and establish diplomatic relations, after Egypt and Jordan in 1979 and 1994, respectively.
Bahrain also normalised relations with Israel and signed an official agreement in Manama on Sunday.
US President Donald Trump gave Washington’s blessing to Israel’s annexation of large areas of the West Bank, including the settlements considered illegal under international law, in his peace plan unveiled in January.
The UAE has consistently reaffirmed its commitment to the creation of a Palestinian state.
Overall standings
1. Christopher Froome (GBR/Sky) 68hr 18min 36sec,
2. Fabio Aru (ITA/AST) at 0:18.
3. Romain Bardet (FRA/ALM) 0:23.
4. Rigoberto Uran (COL/CAN) 0:29.
5. Mikel Landa (ESP/SKY) 1:17.
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Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
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How to increase your savings
- Have a plan for your savings.
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- Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Five expert hiking tips
Always check the weather forecast before setting off
Make sure you have plenty of water
Set off early to avoid sudden weather changes in the afternoon
Wear appropriate clothing and footwear
Take your litter home with you
Earth under attack: Cosmic impacts throughout history
- 4.5 billion years ago: Mars-sized object smashes into the newly-formed Earth, creating debris that coalesces to form the Moon
- 66 million years ago: 10km-wide asteroid crashes into the Gulf of Mexico, wiping out over 70 per cent of living species – including the dinosaurs.
- 50,000 years ago: 50m-wide iron meteor crashes in Arizona with the violence of 10 megatonne hydrogen bomb, creating the famous 1.2km-wide Barringer Crater
- 1490: Meteor storm over Shansi Province, north-east China when large stones “fell like rain”, reportedly leading to thousands of deaths.
- 1908: 100-metre meteor from the Taurid Complex explodes near the Tunguska river in Siberia with the force of 1,000 Hiroshima-type bombs, devastating 2,000 square kilometres of forest.
- 1998: Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 breaks apart and crashes into Jupiter in series of impacts that would have annihilated life on Earth.
-2013: 10,000-tonne meteor burns up over the southern Urals region of Russia, releasing a pressure blast and flash that left over 1600 people injured.
