Israel and the US are increasingly certain that relations between Israel and Sudan will soon see a breakthrough. A senior official in the US administration told Israel Hayom on Tuesday that within a "few weeks," Sudan would announce it was about to make peace with Israel.
"We're close, and it will happen," the official said. Diplomatic officials in Israel confirmed that recent days have seen the start of something new between Khartoum and Jerusalem.
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The optimistic assessments came after US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo visited Sudan on Tuesday, arriving on the first direct flight from Israel to Khartoum. Speaking to Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok, Pompeo touched on the possibility of Sudan moving ahead to normalize ties with Israel. "Pleased to meet … and discuss Sudan's commitment to deepening the Sudan-Israel relationship," Pompeo tweeted after the meeting.
Hamdok told Pompeo that the transitional government in Sudan did not have the authority to decide on normalization with Israel, but Pompeo noted "positive development."
Washington believes that the person making decisions in Sudan is chairman of the Transitional Council Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, who met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu some six months ago and supports closer ties with both Israel and the US.
Intelligence Minister Eli Cohen welcomed the "breakthrough" with Sudan.
"Only recently, the ministry published a document that mapped out areas of common interest for Israel and Sudan. According to that document, Sudan can help Israel prevent weapons smuggling to the Gaza Strip via the Red Sea, and help our war on terrorism. An agreement would also allow us to send illegal migrants from Sudan back to their country," Cohen said.
Meanwhile, Pompeo continues his tour of the Middle East and on Wednesday arrived in Bahrain with the goal of encouraging that nation to make peace with Israel. "Glad to arrive in the Gulf today ... We need Gulf unity now more than ever to counter Iran and to build lasting peace and prosperity," Pompeo said in a Twitter message.
From Bahrain, Pompeo is scheduled to continue on to the UAE and Oman. Members of Pompeo's staff noted that he might visit another Arab country.
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As reported in Israel Hayom, Pompeo's round of visits is intended to persuade Israel and the moderate Arab states to hold a regional peace conference sponsored by the US that would most likely be held in one of the Emirates. Sources in Israel confirmed that report on Tuesday.
High-ranking Arab diplomats are saying that Bahrain, Morocco, and Oman are on the way to strengthening ties with Israel, but will not take any official steps until Israel and the UAE sign off on a deal for normalization. The diplomats stressed that the Palestinians had been contacted to see whether or not Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas would agree to take part in the peace conference, if it is held. Palestinian officials said that any such invitation would be rejected out of hand.
For now, progress continues between Israel and the UAE. Next week, an Israeli-American delegation is scheduled to visit the UAE to begin talks. Israeli representatives will include head of the National Security Council Meir Ben-Shabbat; acting Director-General of the Prime Minister's office Ronen Peretz; Director-General of the Defense Ministry Maj. Gen. (res.) Amir Eshel; and head of the Civil Aviation Authority Yoel Feldshaw, among others.
Netanyahu said he hoped that "other countries in our region would join the circle of peace."
On Tuesday, Defense Minister Benny Gantz held his first conversation with his Emirati counterpart, Mohammed al-Bawardi. Gantz's office said that the two defense chiefs "discussed the need to move ahead with the normalization agreement, which will among other things anchor bilateral security cooperation."
