Biden does not invest in the Middle East because of the virus

The government of US President Joe Biden suspended indefinitely the Abraham Fund to support the economies of the Middle East countries, which was established by the United States, Israel and the United Arab Emirates last September following the signing of the so-called Ibrahim Agreement between the three countries. Countries.

Unnamed Israeli and US sources told the Israeli economic newspaper Globes that the US government wants to use the money to mitigate the domestic economic damage caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

It will be funded by three or more people

Under the agreement signed in the fall of 2020, the three signatories, along with others that would join later, should have funded the fund. The agreement stipulates that the fund will provide $3 billion to support various private investments in the region to enhance economic cooperation and prosperity.

As stated in the statement issued upon signing the contract: “The Fund is committed to implementing the commitments made in the Ibrahim Agreements.

Countries that are co-founders of the fund welcome other countries to join in furthering the fund’s goals.”

According to a Globes report, Abraham Fund has already reviewed hundreds of applications since October last year and agreed to support at least a dozen applications, mainly in the energy, food and fintech industries.

The Abraham Fund is also intended for large US financial institutions turnedwhich was asked to join in order to increase the capital of the fund.

Biden quickly left

However, with the election of US President Joe Biden, the fund’s activities ceased. Because of this, its leader Rabbi Aryeh Lightstone, appointed by former President Donald Trump, resigned in late January, and the Biden government has not appointed anyone to replace him.

Those who tell Globes say the Biden government also supports the fund in principle, but is less willing to give it money than the Trump administration.

The matter was discussed by representatives of the Israeli Foreign Ministry in Washington. Referring to a US source, Globes wrote that the Biden government wanted to review fund support, shift focus from funding to diplomacy, and freeze reference until a decision on the issue is made.

According to the Israeli newspaper, also referring to the American reports, the reason for the American freeze is also that the Biden government needs huge sums to recover from the economic crisis caused by the pandemic.

conflicting relationships

Due to the suspension of US financial aid, Israel and the UAE set up another fund in March, but it has not yet been able to start its operations.

Makes it more difficult Trade relations between Israel and the UAE as well as discussion with the new Israeli government and diplomatic commercial incidents. Businessmen from two of the richest families in the Emirates, for example, were angry that Foreign Minister Jair Lapid had canceled a meeting with them during his visit to Abu Dhabi.

There are also voices in the new Israeli government directly calling for a condemnation of the agreement, in part because Environment Minister Tamar Zandberg and other ministers oppose it.