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Former Bulgarian Foreign Minister and outgoing UN envoy to the Middle East, Nikolai Mladenov, saw the establishment of official relations between the Arab countries and Tel Aviv as “a positive change that could benefit the Palestinians.”
The US newspaper “New York Times” quoted the Bulgarian diplomat as saying that “normalization can be used as a carrot to reward Israel for stopping annexation operations.”
Turning to the Palestinians regarding the recent agreements between the Arab countries and the Hebrew state as a “catastrophic betrayal”, Mladenov said they could also be beneficial to the Palestinians, adding: “Ok, now the Palestinians are very angry” . But, “Let’s put all these emotions aside and think: Who are the most effective in pressuring Israel to do things? Egypt and Jordan. And if 4, 6 or 10 Arab countries have embassies in Tel Aviv, you would want these countries to be on your side, right? “
He added that these relations give some Arab countries influence over Tel Aviv. Therefore, “if you are Palestinian, you really want to explain to your Arab brothers and friends what your positions are and bring them back to your side at the dialogue table.”
The New York Times explained that Mladenov, while not enthusiastic about Trump’s peace plan, said the ongoing transformations are creating exciting possibilities for his successor as UN envoy, who is Norwegian diplomat Thor Wennesland.
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