By — Nick Schifrin Nick Schifrin Leave a comment 0comments Share Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/the-shared-interests-and-concerns-that-led-to-israels-normalization-with-bahrain-and-uae Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Transcript Audio The first Arab-Israeli agreement in 25 years was signed Tuesday on the White House South Lawn, as Israel normalized relations with Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates. Joined by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and foreign ministers from Bahrain and United Arab Emirates, President Trump said the occasion marked “the dawn of a new Middle East.” Nick Schifrin reports on what's at stake. Read the Full Transcript Notice: Transcripts are machine and human generated and lightly edited for accuracy. They may contain errors. Judy Woodruff: On this day with more than its share of climate news, we turn first to the White House South Lawn and the signing of the first Arab-Israeli agreement in a quarter-century, as Israel normalized relations with Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates.In a moment, we will get the views of top presidential adviser Jared Kushner.But, first, foreign affairs correspondent Nick Schifrin lays out the stakes of the deal and today's moment. Nick Schifrin: Israel, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates have never fought a war, but they all hope today sparks peace. President Donald Trump: After decades of division and conflict, we mark the dawn of a new Middle East. Benjamin Netanyahu: This peace will eventually expand to include other Arab states, and, ultimately, it can end the Arab-Israeli conflict once and for all. Abdullah Bin Zayed (through translator): We are already witnessing a change in the heart of the Middle East, a change that will send hope around the world. Nick Schifrin: The normalization agreements pledged to settle disputes without force, establish embassies, create direct flights, and expand investment, tourism and trade.The countries share economic interests that extend from Tel Aviv to the Emirati business capital, Dubai. Benjamin Netanyahu: The great economic benefits of our partnership will be felt throughout our region. Nick Schifrin: The countries also share fears of political Islam and Iran. Shia Iran threatens Israel and Sunni countries with the region's largest missile inventory and proxies that have expanded their influence.Analysts also say today is about shared doubts, about the U.S. commitment. Israel is now seen as the most reliable regional partner. The UAE is hoping to buy American weapons, including the F-35, and buy goodwill in Washington among those who criticize the country for helping lead the war in Yemen that's killed tens of thousands.Before today, the U.S. had hosted the first two Arab-Israeli agreements with Jordan and Egypt that swapped land for peace, but left unsolved today, Israel's core conflict with the Palestinians. The Emirates say normalization halted Israeli annexation of settlements in the West Bank.But, during the ceremony, militants in Gaza fired missiles into Israeli cities. And, this morning, Palestinians in the occupied West Bank protested normalization before peace.Palestinians and many regional analysts warn, regional peace is impossible without Israeli-Palestinian peace. Saeb Erekat: The real conflict is a Palestinian-Israeli conflict. And that's what needs to be solved. This is the only way to peace and security and stability in this region. Nick Schifrin: The U.S. hopes today creates irreversible momentum that isolates the Palestinians.In the meantime, today makes overt what had once been covert: a partial Israeli-Gulf realignment of the Middle East.For the "PBS NewsHour," I'm Nick Schifrin. Listen to this Segment Watch Watch the Full Episode PBS NewsHour from Sep 15, 2020 By — Nick Schifrin Nick Schifrin Nick Schifrin is PBS NewsHour’s Foreign Affairs and Defense Correspondent. He leads NewsHour’s daily foreign coverage, including multiple trips to Ukraine since the full-scale invasion, and has created weeklong series for the NewsHour from nearly a dozen countries. The PBS NewsHour series “Inside Putin’s Russia” won a 2017 Peabody Award and the National Press Club’s Edwin M. Hood Award for Diplomatic Correspondence. In 2020 Schifrin received the American Academy of Diplomacy’s Arthur Ross Media Award for Distinguished Reporting and Analysis of Foreign Affairs. He was a member of the NewsHour teams awarded a 2021 Peabody for coverage of COVID-19, and a 2023 duPont Columbia Award for coverage of Afghanistan and Ukraine. Prior to PBS NewsHour, Schifrin was Al Jazeera America's Middle East correspondent. He led the channel’s coverage of the 2014 war in Gaza; reported on the Syrian war from Syria's Turkish, Lebanese and Jordanian borders; and covered the annexation of Crimea. He won an Overseas Press Club award for his Gaza coverage and a National Headliners Award for his Ukraine coverage. From 2008-2012, Schifrin served as the ABC News correspondent in Afghanistan and Pakistan. In 2011 he was one of the first journalists to arrive in Abbottabad, Pakistan, after Osama bin Laden’s death and delivered one of the year’s biggest exclusives: the first video from inside bin Laden’s compound. His reporting helped ABC News win an Edward R. Murrow award for its bin Laden coverage. Schifrin is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and a board member of the Overseas Press Club Foundation. He has a Bachelor’s degree from Columbia University and a Master of International Public Policy degree from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). @nickschifrin