The Abraham Accords and Pakistan

In a major diplomatic realignment, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain normalized their relations with Israel in September 2020 by signing the Abraham Peace Accords in Washington. However, this normalization has created a noticeable divide; other majority-Muslim states, including Morocco and Sudan, have also accepted incentives to normalize relations with Israel, while pressure is mounting on Pakistan from its close allies in the Gulf region to recognize Israel. Pakistan, which enjoys multifaceted cooperative relations with all states of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), now faces a dilemma, as it has a longstanding position on the Palestine issue through which it views its policy on Israel. Considering the dilemma, this article focuses on the impact the Abraham Peace Accords have had on Pakistan’s relations with the GCC states and its own Israel policy. Based on the examination of various ideational and geopolitical factors, it is argued that Pakistan has more to lose than gain by changing its historical position and recognizing the state of Israel.