JERUSALEM: Israel Prime Minister Naftali Bennett on Sunday described a summit of top diplomats from the US, Israel and four Arab nations with which it has normalised ties as "historic, saying the Jewish state is cultivating old ties and building new bridges.
"This is a very festive day. We are hosting the 'Negev Summit' here in Israel. The foreign ministers of Egypt, the UAE, Morocco and Bahrain will arrive in Sde Boker for a meeting with (Foreign) Minister (Yair) Lapid and (US) Secretary of State (Anthony) Blinken," Bennett said at the start of the weekly Cabinet meeting.
"For those who have yet to notice, Israel's foreign relations are experiencing a good period. Israel is an important player on the global and regional stage. We are cultivating old ties and building new bridges," he stressed.
Last Tuesday, Bennett met Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Abu Dhabi's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed in the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, which he called a "defining moment".
"Our oldest peace, with Egypt, met the newest peace, that of the Abraham Accords. We are all adding more and more content diplomatic, economic and security to these relations, which have existed for more than a few years, in order to forge links between the moderate states in the Middle East. I am pleased to see that this will also be continuing at the meeting in Sde Boker", the Israeli leader said.
The Negev Summit, set to be hosted in the remote Negev desert farm collective known as Sde Boker - also home to Israel's first prime minister David Ben-Gurion, comes after a phase of intense diplomatic engagement between these countries following the signing of Abraham accords in 2020.
Taking a dig at Iran whose nuclear programme worries most of the countries in the Middle East, the Israeli premier said that "there is a player in the Middle East that is creating violence and obstacles and there is one that is pushing for cooperation, prosperity and peace".
The Arab world understands more and more that Israel has always been on the side of peace and cooperation, he emphasised.
"While we are discussing peace, there is a player that does not cease warmongering and lighting fires. We received another reminder of this over the weekend in the attack by the Houthis, who are managed by the Iranian Revolutionary Guards, against Saudi Arabia", he asserted.
The UAE forged diplomatic ties with Israel in 2020 under a series of US-brokered deals known as the Abraham Accords.
Bahrain and Morocco followed suit, while Sudan also agreed to normalise ties with Israel although it has yet to finalise a deal.
The agreements spearheaded by then US President Donald Trump challenged the long-held view that there would be no relations between the Arab world and Israel while the Palestinian question remains unresolved.
Blinken met Lapid and Israeli President Isaac Herzog in Jerusalem before the start of the Negev summit later in the day.
He was scheduled to travel to the West Bank town of Ramallah to meet Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.
Acknowledging differences with close ally US on the Iranian nuclear programme, which Israel has declared an existential threat against which it will keep "all options open on the table" to foil it, Lapid emphasised that it is not an Israeli problem alone.
"Iran is not an Israeli problem. The world cannot afford a nuclear Iran. The world cannot afford for the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps to continue spreading terror around the globe," the Israeli foreign minister said.
"We have disagreements about a nuclear agreement and its consequences, but open and honest dialogue is part of the strength of our friendship. Israel and the United States will continue to work together to prevent a nuclear Iran," he emphasised.
The top Israeli diplomat re-iterated Israeli position to foil Iran's nuclear ambitions at any cost.
"At the same time, Israel will do anything we believe is needed to stop the Iranian nuclear programme. Anything. From our point of view, the Iranian threat is not theoretical. The Iranians want to destroy Israel. They will not succeed. We will not let them," he asserted.
Blinken, who landed in Israel on Saturday, tried to address Israeli concerns by saying that the US and Israel see "eye to eye" on preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons.
"Whether there's a JCPOA or not, our commitment to the core principle of Iran never acquiring a nuclear weapon is unwavering," he said.
In his meeting with the Israeli President, Blinken lauded the Abraham accords saying what is happening in the Negev later today would have been "unimaginable just a few years ago".
"What we're seeing is normalisation becoming the new normal for this region and I think it's going to attract more and more countries as they see the benefits of these partnerships among so many of the leading countries of the region," he noted.
The economic gains accruing out of partnership with Israel has been at the centre of justification by the Arab world for normalising ties.
Lapid and Blinken will be joined by UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed, Bahrain Foreign Minister Dr.
Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani, Morocco Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita and Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry for discussions.