From the Liveblog of
Friday, September 22, 2023
PM hails new corridor of peace Biden announced at G20, as opening the potential blessing of a new Middle East
Lazar Berman is The Times of Israel's diplomatic reporter
As he often does, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu brings out visual aids, showing the potential benefits of peace with Saudi Arabia and other Arab countries.
To show “the magnitude of the transformation we seek to advance,” he first shows a map of Israel in 1948 — “a tiny country, isolated, surrounded by a hostile Arab world.”
Then came peace with Egypt and Jordan, and in 2020 the Abraham accords.
“Now look at what happens when we make peace between Saudi Arabia and Israel: The whole Middle East changes.”
He recalls pulling out a red marker a few years ago to show the “curse” of a nuclear Iran.
He again pulls out a red marker, to show the connectivity between India, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Israel and Europe on a placard called “The New Middle East.”
“Today I bring this marker to show a great blessing — the blessing of a new Middle East: between Israel, Saudi Arabia and our other neighbors. We will not only bring down barriers between Israel and our neighbors. We will build a new corridor of peace and prosperity that connects Asia through the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Israel, to Europe.”
He calls this “an extraordinary change, a monumental change, another pivot of history.”
