Israel agreed with Sudan to work towards normalising relations in a deal brokered by the US that would make Sudan the third Arab country to set aside hostilities with Israel in the past two months. Sudan, which was technically at war with Israel since its foundation in 1948, has now become the third country to forge diplomatic relations with it, in recent times. Earlier, the USA brokered diplomatic pacts between Israel and the UAE and Bahrain as well, to normalise their relations.
The establishment of diplomatic relations between Israel and Sudan would be a game-changer. It was recently announced that Israel and Sudan established diplomatic ties last August. This comes as Sudan has been pushing to normalize its international relations, reversing the strained relations with Washington and the European Union. If implemented, the deal would deepen Sudan’s engagement with the West, opening up prospects for US businesses such as developing oil pipeline projects and expanding medical tourism from the West through Sudan.
Amid reports that Sudan and Israel are maintaining full ties in a deal that followed the conditional agreement by the United States to remove Sudan from its blacklist of countries accused of sponsoring terrorism, there is still a great deal to understand about the implications of this step towards normalization.
It started with a once-daily airlift. It ended with a handshake. If Trump's election campaign was fuelled by isolationist rhetoric, he has delivered in spades in the Middle East.
The normalization of Sudan and Israel relations seems to be taking place amid reports that Israel has categorically refused to consider a “two-state” solution for the Palestinian issue.