On Tuesday at noon, Khaldon Al Mubarak, CEO of the Government Investment Company of the United Arab Emirates, Al Mubadala, arrived in Israel. Al Mubarak is an international investment and trade expert, as well as the right-hand man of President Mohammed bin Zayed, and the architect of economic relations between the UAE and China. Al-Mubadala has a total of investments higher than Israel’s annual budget, and after the Abraham agreements were signed, the company invested over a billion dollars in purchasing a 22% stake in the “Tamar” gas drilling from Yitzhak Teshuva.
Though Al-Mubarak is also the president of Manchester City, his visit to Israel was not about discussing English football. Upon landing, he met with President Yitzhak Herzog at the Mishkan of the Presidents of Israel, before continuing to meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Al-Mubarak communicated a message from his master about the potential danger to the UAE’s investments if emerging legislation threatened Israel’s economic stability.
The sudden anxiety shown by the UAE about their investments in Israel suggests how the internal crisis in Israel has reached its peak. Other leaders in the region, such as Yahya Sanwar, Abu Mazen, and the king of Jordan, are also worried that a deterioration of Israel’s legal system could result in a state with no tolerance towards minorities or neighbors. There has not been a visit to Israel at such a high level for such a purpose since the official relations between the UAE and Israel were founded.
The recent statements by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich have also caused a stir in the region. During a visit to Paris, Smotrich questioned the existence of a Palestinian culture, history, or currency, leading some to believe that this means there is no Palestinian people or a place for a Palestinian state or even the Kingdom of Jordan. The Jordanian Foreign Ministry summoned Israel’s ambassador for a strong protest and recommended the government to take practical and effective measures. For many, the palace did calm down, but many others continued to voice their concerns.
Though Smotrich’s remarks are not representative of the State of Israel, some fear that his extremist ideas are also present within Netanyahu’s hidden position. This is causing regional tensions to rise and leading some to question Israel’s democracy.
On Tuesday at noon, Khaldon Al Mubarak, CEO of the Government Investment Company of the United Arab Emirates, Al Mubadala, an international investment and trade expert, the right-hand man of President Mohammed bin Zayed, landed in Israel. Al Mubarak is also the architect of economic relations between the United Arab Emirates to China, which have grown stronger in recent years.
Al-Mubadala is a global actress. The total of its investments is higher than the annual budget of the State of Israel. A few months after the signing of the Abraham agreements, the company in Israel invested more than a billion dollars in buying from Yitzhak Teshuva 22% in the “Tamar” gas drilling.
Al-Mubarak is also the president of Manchester City, but he didn’t come to drink beer and talk about English football. Upon landing, he headed to the Mishkan of the Presidents of Israel and met with President Yitzhak Herzog. Then he continued to a meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. In his mouth was a message from his master. The emerging legislation, he explained to his esteemed hosts, could endanger your economic stability, and accordingly harm our investments.
He groped to what extent the dollars that his senders had invested in the “Tamar” drilling were in danger. He also tried to understand in general where we Israelis are going. I’m not sure he got overwhelming answers. It is doubtful whether his hosts themselves know the answer.
This story shows how far we have come with the internal crisis. Who would have believed that the United Arab Emirates, which stormed the relations with us with a vengeance, would show anxiety for its investments in Israel almost overnight.
Muhammad bin Zayed is not alone. Yahya Sanwar is also anxiously waiting for news from Jerusalem. Abu Mazen too. Also the king of Jordan. All three fear that a worsening of the Israeli legal system will eliminate its liberal fringes, and will soon turn it into a state with no tolerance towards neighbors and members of minorities. Without the High Court and without B’Tselem, this time for the truth.
The Emirati financier’s visit was planned to take place away from the spotlight. A little bird whispered to me about his existence, and I broadcast the information on the airwaves of the IDF. This is how his visit was made public. But Khaldon came and Mubarak left, and there was no message from Jerusalem. At their will, the President’s House and the Prime Minister’s Office know how to report their moves to the public This time they preferred to hide. You can understand them. Since official relations with the United Arab Emirates were founded, there has not been a visit here at such a high level for such embarrassing purposes.
First we delete Hvara
I have never heard my Jordanian friend speak like that. He is a wise and pleasant man, I believe, a long-time follower of the relations between Israel and Jordan, and one who knows them well from the inside. As of Monday, statements made by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich during his visit to Paris were published. Smotrich wondered if the Palestinians ever had a currency (a symbol of sovereignty), if they had a culture or a history. He stated that since we have not heard from our time about all of these, this is the proof that there is no Palestinian people.
He delivered the speech above a platform on which was hung the symbol of the New Zionist Organization (The Zionist Organization), which was founded by the Revisionist movement in 1938. The symbol depicts the great Israel, which stretches from both banks of the Jordan.
What was said and what we will talk about. First we delete Hvara. Then Jordan. The images and voices from Paris also reached Rabat Ammon and ignited a storm there. If according to the finance minister there is no Palestinian people, and Israel’s borders touch Iraq, the message is clear. Not only is there no place for a Palestinian state, neither is the Kingdom of Jordan.
The Jordanian Foreign Ministry summoned Israel’s ambassador, Eitan Sorkis, for a strong protest. The Jordanian parliament recommended the government to eliminate it, and demanded practical and effective measures from it. That is to say, the executive authority is not performing its duty. The head of the National Security Staff, Tzachi Hanegbi, hastened to apologize to the Jordanians. He clarified that Smotrich’s words do not represent the position of the State of Israel. We, the Negev told Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safdi, support the integrity of the Jordanian land and the sovereignty of the kingdom.
The palace did calm down, but many continued to pluck their hair.
Filled if Smotrich responded to any Jordanian attack on Israel. But the opposite happened. On the same day he appeared in Paris, representatives from the Jordanian intelligence gathered with their colleagues from the Shin Bet in Sharm el-Sheikh. Together with the Egyptians and others, they discussed advice on how to prevent bloodshed in Ramadan.
“A lot of times you talk nonsense, and we ignore it,” the Jordanian explained to me, “this time it’s not like that. Smotrich is a senior minister in the government. Tomorrow he could be prime minister. You don’t believe it? I do. Who would have thought that an extremist like Itamar Ben Gabir Will he ever be a minister?”
For many years, the cry was heard on the fringes of the right in Israel that Jordan is Palestine. They called it the “alternative state theory”. And here this call crept to the top of the government. And just as with us it climbed up, so also in Jordan it is settling in the hearts of the counter reaction. According to this idea, the palace must withdraw the Jordanian army from the border, thereby ceasing to protect Israel’s security. This reading, too, used to belong to the grumpy street, and has since climbed higher.
Today you can hear middle ranks on Shelton Boulevard where they are toying with the idea. We are Israel’s border guard, they say. We will take the forces back, we will see them guarding 600 km of border strip.
“I,” my Jordanian friend continued, frowning, “I won’t tell you whether to be left-wing or right-wing. Ariel Sharon was right-wing, but we were his friends. So was Yitzchak Shamir. They both knew what your interests were, and they kept the conversation with you. Smotrich doesn’t care , and he does not protect your interest.”
There are even those close to the king who believe that Smotrich is not alone. His ideas also express Netanyahu’s hidden position. In fact, they say, the prime minister could have denied the words of his finance minister, but preferred to send the negbi to the task. “How do you look in the world, this is the State of Israel?”, the Jordanian concluded his words angrily. Another added the punch line: “If this is your democracy, a dictatorship is better”.
The writer is the commentator on Arab affairs of Gali IDF