The Abraham Accords: the culmination of a decades-long normalization process between Israel and the UAE

תקציר

In this thesis, I aim to explain the timing of the UAE’s normalization of relations with Israel, analyzing the Abraham Accords as a key case to understand the politics of normalization more generally. By investigating the history and evolution of Emirati-Israeli relations and analyzing theories of normalization, I intend to identify the conditions under which states decide to establish normal relations and elucidate why Israel and the UAE ultimately chose to do so. Recognizing that the UAE’s decision to normalize ties to Israel largely paved the way for others to follow, I will be focusing my research on the evolution of Emirati-Israeli relations in particular, which more clearly underscore the conditions under which states decide to formalize tacit cooperation.