By Al-Fassel | 2023-12-18

In a region beset by conflicts and upheaval, US diplomacy has for decades served to settle disputes between rivals and sustain peace in the Middle East.

From the Camp David Accords in 1978 to the Abraham Accords today, the role of the United States in prioritizing diplomacy has been a key driver in shaping agreements that have prevented an escalation of tensions around the region.

More than 40 years after the Camp David Accords were signed, they continue to pay dividends for regional and global security and stability.

Signed in September 1978 by US President Jimmy Carter, Egyptian President Anwar al-Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin, the agreement established a framework for a 1979 peace treaty between Israel and Egypt.

They also enabled the 1993 Oslo Accords between Israelis and Palestinians, which in turn opened the door to the 1994 treaty between Israel and Jordan, according to a US Institute of Peace (USIP) retrospective from 2019.

"Camp David was a landmark moment in Middle East politics," said the USIP report, published to mark the 40th anniversary of the Egyptian-Israeli peace treaty.

The accords reshaped the region's political landscape, according to Middle East policy analyst Michael Singh of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.

"The Camp David Accords marked a vital transition for Egypt and Israel and the broader region, from a state of near-constant conflict to an era of peacemaking," Singh said in a 40th anniversary statement from the US Embassy in Israel.

"While the region still has serious problems, the accords helped to usher in greater prosperity for people on all sides and eliminated a major threat to regional peace and stability," he said.

Key for permanent peace

In 2020, the United States brokered another set of agreements -- the Abraham Accords -- opening the door for normalization between Israel and Arab states.

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) was the first state to break with the long-standing Arab consensus and establish diplomatic ties with Israel, followed by Bahrain, Morocco and Sudan.

Saudi Arabia also was in talks over a potential normalization deal, but these discussions are now on hold.

Many say the normalization accords are a necessity for the establishment of permanent peace in the Middle East and as a shield against Iranian threats.

Now more than ever, the normalization of relations among countries of the Fertile Crescent region -- an area that covers southern Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, the Palestinian territories, Israel, Egypt and parts of Türkiye and Iran -- is "vital to bringing stability to this region," said political analyst Mohammed Salam.

The region has been "in a state of war and antagonism for more than 170 years," he told Al-Fassel.

"Confronting terrorist entities that have no interest in peace is required," said economic analyst Antoine Farah, noting that permanent peace is based on granting all peoples their rights.

"If comprehensive peace is achieved, the region will witness a major economic revival, and the volume of local and foreign investments will increase significantly," he told Al-Fassel.

Normalization has offered short- and long-term benefits to both the UAE and Israel, based on their "enhanced international and regional standing, economic synergies and strategic opportunities," Chatham House said in a March 2023 research paper.

"Normalization has helped foster increased levels of regional engagement, conflict de-escalation and diplomatic reconciliation, seen through an array of bilateral and multilateral initiatives such as the Baghdad summits, the March 2022 Negev summit and the Israel-Lebanon Maritime Agreement," it said.

'A safety valve'

"The United States, through its intense diplomatic activity in the Middle East region, has been able to serve as a safety valve, especially during intense crises," political researcher Abdul Nabi Bakkar told Al-Fassel.

Such activity is "a strong bulwark against the efforts of some countries to stoke tension... in the region, and even escalate the tension to the stage of direct confrontation, military conflict and lawlessness," he said.

The United States has maintained strategic partnerships and friendships with the majority of Arab countries for decades, he added.

When asked during a recent television interview whether peace was possible in the region without the United States, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said, "Without it, it will not work."

The Middle East "has suffered and continues to suffer from devastating conflicts that have brought calamities on civilians," said retired Egyptian police officer Maj. Gen. Montaser Ahmed.

"Had it not been for the intervention by the United States and regional partners, the region would have witnessed more calamities," he said.

'Strong partners'

Following a meeting in Washington on July 19, the United States and the Arab League issued a joint statement reiterating their commitment to "promoting peace, security, stability, integration and economic prosperity" throughout the region.

The parties "discussed a variety of important issues and crises including Middle East peace," the statement said.

"We are encouraged by the common ground we have found on the importance of community engagement, building resilience to recruitment to violence, and supporting the role of education in countering radicalization to violence and terrorism," it said.

"Together, we stand firm in our fight against ISIS/Daesh [the 'Islamic State of Iraq and Syria'], al-Qaeda and all other terrorist groups."

The Arab League, founded in 1945, is a loose alliance of 22 Arab countries spanning the Middle East and Africa, and the United States is a long-time supporter of the alliance.

"The United States believes strongly the Arab League is vital to both regional and international peace and security," US Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield said in a statement June 8.

The Arab League shoulders "a weighty responsibility," she said, adding that it has "a strong partner in the United States and in the United Nations."