The Abraham Accords: A New Political Approach to Palestine

Abstract

The 2020 Abraham Accords fundamentally reshaped Middle Eastern geopolitics by establishing formal diplomatic relations between Israel and several Arab states—namely the UAE, Bahrain, Morocco, and Sudan—thereby dismantling the decades-old Arab consensus that had made normalization contingent upon a comprehensive resolution of the Palestinian issue. This historic breakthrough represented more than mere diplomatic recognition; it signaled a profound strategic realignment wherein individual state interests, particularly regarding security and economic development, began to supersede longstanding ideological commitments to pan-Arab solidarity and the Palestinian cause.

This analysis aims to critically examine the complex strategic motivations underlying the Abraham Accords and to assess their transformative impact on the regional order, particularly regarding how they have reconfigured traditional alliance structures and conflict dynamics across the Middle East.

The primary objective is to identify and analyze the convergence of "push and pull" factors driving this realignment—with specific focus on the perceived Iranian threat as the principal push factor, alongside the attractive forces of technological cooperation, security partnerships, and economic diversification as key pull factors—while also evaluating the long-term sustainability of this new geopolitical configuration.

The study employs an integrated multi-theoretical framework combining realist, liberal, and constructivist perspectives to provide a comprehensive understanding of the Accords, examining respectively the security calculations against Iran, the economic incentives driving cooperation, and the emerging shift toward a pragmatic regional identity that transcends traditional ideological commitments.

The research reveals that while the Accords have successfully transformed the broad Arab-Israeli conflict into a more localized Palestinian-Israeli struggle, this new status quo remains inherently fragile. The unresolved Palestinian question continues to generate popular unrest and provides strategic leverage for non-state actors, while the signatories' simultaneous hedging strategies through engagement with China and Russia, combined with the architecture's heavy dependence on U.S. mediation susceptible to domestic political volatility, collectively undermine the long-term stability of this realignment. Thus, the Accords represent not the conclusion of regional conflict but rather the beginning of a more complex and uncertain chapter in Middle Eastern international relations.