Weaken Israel, Boost Axis Of Resistance, Prevent Normalization: Decoding Iran's Syria Gameplan
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First Post
8 minutes ago
- First Post
Trump pushes to expand Abraham Accords with Azerbaijan, Central Asian nations, say sources
The Trump administration is in advanced talks with Azerbaijan and preliminary discussions with Central Asian nations to expand the Abraham Accords, according to sources. The initiative aims to solidify symbolic ties with Israel, despite regional tensions and the ongoing war in Gaza. read more The administration of US President Donald Trump is in discussions with Azerbaijan about the possibility of the country, along with some Central Asian partners, joining the Abraham Accords, with the aim of strengthening their current relationships with Israel, according to five sources familiar with the matter. As part of the Abraham Accords, signed in 2020 and 2021 during Trump's first term, four Muslim-majority nations agreed to normalise diplomatic ties with Israel following US mediation. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Azerbaijan and all Central Asian countries, on the other hand, already have longstanding relations with Israel, so any expansion of the accords to include them would be largely symbolic, focussing on strengthening ties in areas such as trade and military cooperation, according to the sources, who asked to remain anonymous to discuss private conversations. Such an expansion would demonstrate Trump's willingness to consider less ambitious agreements than his administration's objective of persuading regional heavyweight Saudi Arabia to re-establish ties with Israel while conflict rages in Gaza. The kingdom has repeatedly said that it will not recognise Israel until Israel recognises a Palestinian state. A rising death toll in Gaza and malnutrition caused by Israel's blockade of supplies and military operations have fuelled Arab outrage, hindering efforts to expand the Abraham Accords to include additional Muslim-majority nations. The war in Gaza, where over 60,000 people including tens of thousands of women and children have died according to local health authorities, has provoked global anger. Canada, France and the United Kingdom have announced plans in recent days to recognize an independent Palestine. Another key sticking point is Azerbaijan's conflict with its neighbor Armenia, since the Trump administration considers a peace deal between the two Caucasus nations as a precondition to join the Abraham Accords, three sources said. While Trump officials have publicly floated several potential entrants into the accords, the talks centered on Azerbaijan are among the most structured and serious, the sources said. Two of the sources argued a deal could be reached within months or even weeks. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Trump's special envoy for peace missions, Steve Witkoff, traveled to Azerbaijan's capital, Baku, in March to meet with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev. Aryeh Lightstone, a key Witkoff aide, met Aliyev later in the spring in part to discuss the Abraham Accords, three of the sources said. As part of the discussions, Azerbaijani officials have contacted officials in Central Asian nations, including in nearby Kazakhstan, to gauge their interest in a broader Abraham Accords expansion, those sources said. It was not clear which other countries in Central Asia - which includes Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan - were contacted. The State Department, asked for comment, did not discuss specific countries, but said expanding the accords has been one of the key objectives of Trump. 'We are working to get more countries to join,' said a US official. The Azerbaijani government declined to comment. The White House, the Israeli foreign ministry and the Kazakhstani embassy in Washington did not respond to requests for comment. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Any new accords would not modify the previous Abraham Accords deals signed by Israel. Obstacles remain The original Abraham Accords - inked between Israel and the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco and Sudan - were centered on restoration of ties. The second round of expansion appears to be morphing into a broader mechanism designed to expand US and Israeli soft power. Wedged between Russia to the north and Iran to the south, Azerbaijan occupies a critical link in trade flows between Central Asia and the West. The Caucasus and Central Asia are also rich in natural resources, including oil and gas, prompting various major powers to compete for influence in the region. Expanding the accords to nations that already have diplomatic relations with Israel may also be a means of delivering symbolic wins to a president who is known to talk up even relatively small victories. Two sources described the discussions involving Central Asia as embryonic - but the discussions with Azerbaijan as relatively advanced. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD But challenges remain and there is no guarantee a deal will be reached, particularly with slow progress in talks between Armenia and Azerbaijan. The two countries, which both won independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, have been at loggerheads since the late 1980s when Nagorno-Karabakh - an Azerbaijani region that had a mostly ethnic-Armenian population - broke away from Azerbaijan with support from Armenia. In 2023, Azerbaijan retook Karabakh, prompting about 100,000 ethnic Armenians to flee to Armenia. Both sides have since said they want to sign a treaty on a formal end to the conflict. Primarily Christian Armenia and the US have close ties, and the Trump administration is wary of taking action that could upset authorities in Yerevan. Still, US officials, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Trump himself, have argued that a peace deal between those two nations is near. 'Armenia and Azerbaijan, we worked magic there,' Trump told reporters earlier in July. 'And it's pretty close.' STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD
India Today
38 minutes ago
- India Today
Trump eyes bringing Azerbaijan, Central Asian nations into Abraham Accords: Repot
President Donald Trump's administration is actively discussing with Azerbaijan the possibility of bringing that nation and some Central Asian allies into the Abraham Accords, hoping to deepen their existing ties with Israel, according to five sources with knowledge of the part of the Abraham Accords, inked in 2020 and 2021 during Trump's first term in office, four Muslim-majority countries agreed to normalise diplomatic relations with Israel after US and every country in Central Asia, by contrast, already have longstanding relations with Israel, meaning that an expansion of the accords to include them would largely be symbolic, focusing on strengthening ties in areas like trade and military cooperation, said the sources, who requested anonymity to discuss private conversations. Such an expansion would reflect Trump's openness to pacts that are less ambitious than his administration's goal to convince regional heavyweight Saudi Arabia to restore ties with Israel while war rages in kingdom has repeatedly said it would not recognise Israel without steps towards Israeli recognition of a Palestinian state. A soaring death toll in Gaza and starvation in the enclave due to blockage of aid and military operations by Israel have buoyed Arab fury, complicating efforts to add more Muslim-majority countries to the Abraham war in Gaza, where over 60,000 people including tens of thousands of women and children have died according to local health authorities, has provoked global anger. Canada, France and the United Kingdom have announced plans in recent days to recognise an independent key sticking point is Azerbaijan's conflict with its neighbour Armenia, since the Trump administration considers a peace deal between the two Caucasus nations as a precondition to join the Abraham Accords, three sources Trump officials have publicly floated several potential entrants into the accords, the talks centered on Azerbaijan are among the most structured and serious, the sources said. Two of the sources argued a deal could be reached within months or even special envoy for peace missions, Steve Witkoff, travelled to Azerbaijan's capital, Baku, in March to meet with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev. Aryeh Lightstone, a key Witkoff aide, met Aliyev later in the spring in part to discuss the Abraham Accords, three of the sources part of the discussions, Azerbaijani officials have contacted officials in Central Asian nations, including in nearby Kazakhstan, to gauge their interest in a broader Abraham Accords expansion, those sources said. It was not clear which other countries in Central Asia - which includes Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan - were State Department, asked for comment, did not discuss specific countries, but said expanding the accords has been one of the key objectives of Trump. "We are working to get more countries to join," said a US Azerbaijani government declined to White House, the Israeli foreign ministry and the Kazakhstani embassy in Washington did not respond to requests for new accords would not modify the previous Abraham Accords deals signed by REMAINThe original Abraham Accords - inked between Israel and the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco and Sudan - were centered on restoration of ties. The second round of expansion appears to be morphing into a broader mechanism designed to expand US and Israeli soft between Russia to the north and Iran to the south, Azerbaijan occupies a critical link in trade flows between Central Asia and the West. The Caucasus and Central Asia are also rich in natural resources, including oil and gas, prompting various major powers to compete for influence in the the accords to nations that already have diplomatic relations with Israel may also be a means of delivering symbolic wins to a president who is known to talk up even relatively small sources described the discussions involving Central Asia as embryonic - but the discussions with Azerbaijan as relatively challenges remain and there is no guarantee a deal will be reached, particularly with slow progress in talks between Armenia and two countries, which both won independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, have been at loggerheads since the late 1980s when Nagorno-Karabakh - an Azerbaijani region that had a mostly ethnic-Armenian population - broke away from Azerbaijan with support from 2023, Azerbaijan retook Karabakh, prompting about 100,000 ethnic Armenians to flee to Armenia. Both sides have since said they want to sign a treaty on a formal end to the Christian Armenia and the US have close ties, and the Trump administration is wary of taking action that could upset authorities in US officials, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Trump himself, have argued that a peace deal between those two nations is near."Armenia and Azerbaijan, we worked magic there," Trump told reporters earlier in July. "And it's pretty close."- EndsMust Watch
The Hindu
2 hours ago
- The Hindu
Lebanon says four killed in Israeli strikes on July 31
A series of Israeli air strikes killed four people in southern Lebanon, Beirut's Ministry of Health said on Friday (August 1, 2025) offering a toll for attacks that took place the day before. The Israeli military said on Thursday (July 31) that it had targeted Hezbollah "infrastructure that was used for producing and storing strategic weapons", including what the country's defence minister described as the group's "biggest precision missile manufacturing site".
