[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 150 (Monday, September 19, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Page S4825]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  SENATE RESOLUTION 773--COMMEMORATING THE SECOND ANNIVERSARY OF THE 
               SIGNING OF THE ABRAHAM ACCORDS DECLARATION

  Mr. LANKFORD (for himself, Ms. Rosen, Ms. Ernst, and Mr. Booker) 
submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee 
on Foreign Relations:

                              S. Res. 773

       Whereas, on September 15, 2020, the United States, Israel, 
     United Arab Emirates, and Bahrain signed the historic Abraham 
     Accords;
       Whereas, on December 22, 2020, Morocco signed the Abraham 
     Accords;
       Whereas, on January 6, 2021, Sudan signed the Abraham 
     Accords;
       Whereas the Abraham Accords created formal diplomatic ties 
     between Israel and the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Sudan, 
     and Morocco increasing the number of Arab states with formal 
     diplomatic ties with Israel to six;
       Whereas the Abraham Accords marked the first instance of 
     normalized relations between Israel and Arab countries in 
     more than two decades;
       Whereas the leadership and success of prior normalization 
     agreements between Israel and Egypt in 1979 and between 
     Israel and Jordan in 1994 paved the way for creating formal 
     diplomatic ties with other Arab and Muslim-majority 
     countries;
       Whereas the Abraham Accords have reduced the likelihood of 
     armed conflict, improved ties between Israel and neighboring 
     countries, and advanced the cause of achieving lasting peace 
     in the Middle East, including through a negotiated solution 
     to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict that ensures mutual 
     recognition and guarantees that Israelis and Palestinians 
     live side-by-side with freedom, security, and prosperity;
       Whereas the Abraham Accords provide an opportunity to make 
     tangible improvements in the lives of Palestinians, including 
     increased multilateral investment in the Palestinian economy 
     among signatory countries of the Abraham Accords;
       Whereas continued political, economic, and security 
     cooperation between the United States, Israel, and Arab 
     states remains vital to the prosperity and security of the 
     Middle East;
       Whereas the relationship between the United States and 
     Israel is rooted in shared values and interests;
       Whereas the Abraham Accords demonstrably have advanced 
     religious freedom in the Middle East, including through 
     interfaith and intercultural dialogue between Israel, the 
     United Arab Emirates, and Bahrain;
       Whereas new opportunities for multilateral cooperation 
     generated by the Abraham Accords may improve the ability of 
     the United States to meet nascent threats and emerging 
     challenges;
       Whereas the Embassy of Israel in Abu Dhabi was opened on 
     January 24, 2021, and the United Arab Emirates became the 
     first Gulf country to open an embassy in Tel Aviv, Israel, on 
     May 30, 2021;
       Whereas Israel opened a resident embassy in Manama, 
     Bahrain, in September 2021, and the first ambassador to 
     Israel from Bahrain assumed his post in August 2021;
       Whereas the Foreign Ministers of Israel, Egypt, the United 
     Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco, and the United States 
     convened at the Negev Summit in Sde Boker, Israel, resulting 
     in the establishment of the Negev Forum and six working 
     groups tasked with furthering multilateral cooperation in the 
     areas of energy, education and coexistence, food and water 
     security, health, regional security, and tourism;
       Whereas the Abraham Accords have catalyzed increases in 
     trade, tourism, and investment in the Middle East, 
     benefitting the people of those countries;
       Whereas, at the 2022 World Economic Forum, the Minister of 
     State for Foreign Trade of the United Arab Emirates indicated 
     that bilateral trade with Israel has surpassed $2,500,000,000 
     since the signing of the Abraham Accords;
       Whereas, on May 31, 2022, Israel and the United Arab 
     Emirates signed a comprehensive free-trade agreement to cover 
     96 percent of bilateral trade, amounting to approximately 
     $1,000,000,000;
       Whereas trade between the United Arab Emirates and Israel 
     is expected to surpass $10,000,000,000 within 5 years, 
     economic conditions that were made possible by the Abraham 
     Accords;
       Whereas trade between Israel and Bahrain increased to 
     $1,200,000 in May 2022, up from $0 in May 2021;
       Whereas trade between Israel and Morocco increased to 
     $3,100,000 in May 2022, an increase of 94 percent since May 
     2021;
       Whereas the Abraham Accords have facilitated direct 
     commercial airline flights, improving people-to-people ties 
     in spite of obstacles created by the COVID-19 pandemic;
       Whereas, on July 14, 2022, the United States and Israel 
     signed the Jerusalem U.S.-Israel Strategic Partnership Joint 
     Declaration, which calls for a deepening and broadening of 
     the Abraham Accords; and
       Whereas destabilizing developments in the Middle East 
     continue to demonstrate the importance of the Abraham 
     Accords: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) commemorates the second anniversary of the signing of 
     the Abraham Accords;
       (2) reaffirms the enduring and ironclad alliance between 
     the United States and Israel;
       (3) believes that the United States should--
       (A) prioritize the expansion and strengthening of the 
     Abraham Accords to encourage other countries to normalize 
     relations with Israel and ensure that existing agreements 
     reap tangible security and economic benefits for the citizens 
     of those countries;
       (B) with other signatory countries of the Abraham Accords, 
     promote and develop new areas of regional collaboration 
     including maritime security, defense cooperation, clean 
     energy initiatives, water security initiatives, and direct 
     flights; and
       (C) build on the Abraham Accords to help advance prospects 
     for peace between Israel and the Palestinians, make tangible 
     improvements in the lives of the Palestinian people, and make 
     progress toward a negotiated solution that ensures mutual 
     recognition;
       (4) supports efforts to increase security and prosperity in 
     the Middle East and North Africa via continued security and 
     defense cooperation in furtherance of the Abraham Accords;
       (5) encourages the expansion of the Abraham Accords to 
     include countries that do not have diplomatic relations with 
     Israel, and urges the President to take the necessary steps 
     to secure comparable agreements with other Arab and Muslim-
     majority countries; and
       (6) supports opportunities to expand economic ties between 
     the United States, Israel, and Arab states through 
     comprehensive economic partnerships and other trade 
     initiatives.

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