From normalization to military alliance: Iran did exactly the opposite of the Abraham Accords | Dr. Anat Hochberg-Marom
Dr. Anat Hochberg-Marom argues that the war with Iran is transforming the Abraham Accords from a political normalization initiative into a strategic-military alliance. She notes the economic resilience of the United Arab Emirates despite the crisis, and emphasizes that Kuwait's joining the accords would be key to a dramatic change in the Middle East, crowning Saudi Arabia and establishing an American-Israeli-Emirati architecture to contain Iran.
In an opinion article, Dr. Anat Hochberg-Marom argues that the war with Iran is transforming the Abraham Accords from a political normalization initiative into a reality-altering strategic-military alliance. She notes that the regional crisis has exposed the limits of American deterrence and the vulnerability of Gulf states to Tehran, which have suffered attacks on energy infrastructure, shipping lanes, and financial centers. According to her, the Abraham Accords have proven that a strategic partnership can be established even without progress on the Palestinian track, but the price is the freezing of the normalization process with Saudi Arabia. The author cites a World Bank report indicating a slowdown in Gulf state growth from 4.4% in 2025 to 1.3% in 2026, but emphasizes the economic resilience of the United Arab Emirates, which relies on sovereign wealth funds estimated at 164% of GDP and a 23.9% surge in non-oil exports. She argues that a possible Kuwaiti accession to the Abraham Accords would create a Jerusalem-Abu Dhabi-Kuwait axis that would crown Saudi Arabia and establish an American-Israeli-Emirati architecture to contain Iran.