The intensifying threat posed by the Iranian regime to the security and stability of the Middle East and Western Asia has transformed former adversaries into new allies. The signing of the historic Abraham Peace and Normalization Accords in 2020 has created unprecedented cooperation between Israel and its Arab neighbors in the fields of national security and applied diplomacy as well as trade, high-tech, intelligence, infrastructure, and sustainability. The Jerusalem Center has partnered with Bahrain’s Derasat policy institute, the United Arab Emirates’ Emirates Policy Center, and Morocco’s Policy Center for the New South. These partnerships promise to completely reframe Israel’s profile as a fully integrated and normalized member of the Arab-majority Middle East. The Jerusalem Center, together with its regional partners, will continue to document and expose Iran’s race for hegemony under a rising nuclear umbrella via policy studies and recommendations for decision-makers across the region.
In March 2023, the Jerusalem Center held a pathbreaking international conference, “Trusted Regional Partnerships at a Time of Shifting Alliances,” bringing together representatives from nearly 30 Arab and African nations for three days to discuss and find Israeli solutions for national security and water and food security challenges.
At the conference, the Jerusalem Center extended its Abraham Accords partnerships into the African continent. African nations are turning to Israel as an anchor for security, stability, and prosperity, viewing Israel’s technological capabilities as a solution for food security, water desalinization, and infrastructure development for future generations.
For the first time in Israel’s history, a leading Israeli policy and diplomacy institute – the Jerusalem Center – is partnering with Ethiopia’s leading policy and applied diplomacy institutes. Ethiopia, the second-largest African nation, with a population of 125 million, shares similar national security challenges with Israel, including combating terrorism and radicalization, and seeking to maintain political and social cohesion in a multiethnic society. The Jerusalem Center has also been approached by leading policy institutes in Uganda, Kenya, Sudan, and the Red Sea states of Djibouti and Somaliland.
The Jerusalem Center is collaborating with Ethiopia’s Institute of Foreign Affairs (IFA) and Institute for Peace and Security Studies (IPSS) to create a shared agenda using the following modalities:
- Exchange of Jerusalem Center, IFA, and IPSS-led governmental, parliamentary, and diplomatic delegations.
- Zoom consultations, workshops, roundtables, podcasts and videocasts.
- An annual major conference on Israel-Africa national security challenges is to be held in Africa, Israel, and the United States.
- Policy recommendations on strategic intelligence, military and national security, and infrastructure, food, and water security.
- Impact assessment of Israel’s profile in the West including polling of African, Israeli, and Jewish American public opinion on bilateral and multilateral relations.
- Extension of the Jerusalem Center’s policy and applied diplomacy activities through research centers and universities, media and opinion influencers, and selected civil society stakeholders across the African continent.
Derasat – Bahrain Center for Strategic, International, and Energy Studies
The Bahrain Center for Strategic, International and Energy Studies (Derasat) is an independent think tank in the Kingdom of Bahrain established in 2009. In 2021, Derasat, headed by Deputy Foreign Minister Dr. Abdulla bin Ahmed Al Khalifa, signed a cooperation agreement with the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs.
Emirates Policy Center (EPC) – United Arab Emirates
The Emirates Policy Center (EPC) is an independent think tank based in Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates, established in 2013. In 2021, the Jerusalem Center and the EPC, headed by Dr. Ebtesam Al-Ketbi, signed a Memorandum of Cooperation that paves the way to promote the exchange of knowledge and fruitful cooperation.
Vivekananda International Foundation (VIF) – India
Israel’s normalization and warm ties with India in recent years has become the most important opportunity for Israel in Asia. India’s Vivekananda International Foundation (VIF), headed by Lt.-Gen. R.K. Sawhney, former head of Indian intelligence, has partnered with the Jerusalem Center to pursue joint national security initiatives. VIF has invited the Jerusalem Center to become a member of a small security forum, together with the United Arab Emirates, India, and other regional actors, with the objective of reinforcing security and prosperity in both India and Israel.
Policy Center for the New South – Morocco
The Jerusalem Center is closely cooperating with the Policy Center for the New South in Rabat, Morocco on combatting shared national security threats, particularly from the Iranian regime.
