Title: Commemorating the second anniversary of the signing of the Abraham Accords Declaration.
Policy area: International Affairs

Summary:
This resolution commemorates the second anniversary of the signing of the Abraham Accords, which created formal diplomatic ties between Israel and the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Sudan, and Morocco.

[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 1359 Introduced in House (IH)]

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117th CONGRESS
  2d Session
H. RES. 1359

  Commemorating the second anniversary of the signing of the Abraham 
                          Accords Declaration.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 15, 2022

Mr. Schneider (for himself, Mrs. Rodgers of Washington, Mr. Trone, and 
Mrs. Wagner) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to 
                    the Committee on Foreign Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
  Commemorating the second anniversary of the signing of the Abraham 
                          Accords Declaration.

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 new normalized 
        relations between Israel and Arab countries in more than two decades;
Whereas the leadership and success of prior accords 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 prospect 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 long-standing relationship between the United States and Israel is 
        rooted in shared values and interests;
Whereas the Abraham Accords have demonstrably advanced religious freedom in the 
        Middle East and fostered 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 in March 2022, the Foreign Ministers of Israel, Egypt, the United Arab 
        Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco, and the United States convened at the first 
        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 dramatic growth in trade, tourism, 
        and investment in the Middle East, benefitting the people of those 
        countries;
Whereas in May 2022, the Minister of State for Foreign Trade of the United Arab 
        Emirates indicated that, since the signing of the Abraham Accords, 
        bilateral trade with Israel has surpassed $2,500,000,000;
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 five 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 House of Representatives--
            (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 by encouraging other countries to 
                normalize relations with Israel and working to 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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