Few diplomatic breakthroughs in the 21st century have managed to defy the odds quite like the Abraham Accords. Signed in September 2020, the multilateral agreements normalized relations between Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Bahrain – later joined by Morocco and Sudan.
Now, five years later, the Accords remain intact – albeit tested like never before. The October 2023 Hamas attack on Israel and the prolonged conflict in Gaza have placed an enormous strain on regional alliances.
Yet, Kazakhstan’s decision to join the Abraham Accords in recent weeks underscores its continued relevance and growing appeal beyond the Middle East, signaling a widening recognition that pragmatic cooperation can transcend old divides.
That momentum was further reinforced by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s recent meeting with President Donald Trump in Washington. Their meeting was described as constructive and forward-leaning in terms of expanding the Accords’ reach and accelerating a broader regional realignment.
The possible inclusion of Saudi Arabia in the Accords could achieve their greatest triumph yet.
Economic growth
From the start, the Abraham Accords prioritized economic partnership as a cornerstone of normalization. Spearheaded by Trump and his son-in-law Jared Kushner, the initiative framed commerce not just as a benefit of peace but as a builder of it. By this measure, the Accords have delivered.
Trade between Israel and the UAE surged from just over $50 million in 2020 to more than $3.3 billion in 2024 – with year over year growth continuing despite the Gaza war. Trade with Morocco has also expanded, especially in sectors like automobiles, aerospace, and defense.
Tourism has also flourished. The Emirates has emerged as the top destination for Israeli travelers, even as many global carriers suspended flights to Israel. Emirati airlines, by contrast, not only maintained service but increased capacity between Tel Aviv and cities like Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Just five years ago, there were no commercial flights between the two nations. Today, UAE-bound routes account for 10% of all traffic at Ben-Gurion International Airport.
Beyond diplomacy
While top-down diplomacy drives much of the Abraham Accords’ visibility, some of the most promising developments are happening at the grassroots level, such as academia.
One unlikely leader in this sphere is the University of Connecticut, whose Abrahamic Programs for Academic Collaboration in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Region have become a quiet engine of regional engagement. In fact, the programs predate the Accords, emerging in 2016 as a series of multicultural academic initiatives linking institutions in Connecticut and across the Levant and MENA regions. Built on the shared heritage of the Abrahamic traditions – Judaism, Christianity, and Islam – the programs reflect the same spirit of coexistence the Accords aim to achieve.
Unlike the diplomatic agreements, however, UConn’s Abrahamic Programs operate through educational initiatives and intellectual engagements such as online courses, joint academic workshops, hackathons, and faculty and student mobility programs.
The next generation
UConn Abrahamic Programs recent focus has been on youth engagement – a strategic choice in a region where roughly one-third of the population is under 25. Two recent programs underscore the power of people-to-people engagement in building trust.
The first, a virtual hackathon, brought together 42 students and young entrepreneurs from Israel, the UAE, Bahrain, Morocco, and the Palestinian Territories in collaboration with local universities and EcoPeace Middle East, our primary NGO partner in the region. The Abrahamic Hackathon, a collaboration and innovation competition, was a pilot initiative of the Joseph I. Lieberman Abrahamic Innovation and Entrepreneurship Program in UConn’s Office of Global Affairs.
The participants spent a total of 27 hours over the course of two days brainstorming on how to solve one of the Middle East’s and North Africa’s most pressing challenges – managing household water waste. The winning team, made up of an Israeli, a Moroccan, and a Bahraini student, proposed a smart-sensor avatar linked to AI to help families monitor consumption in real time.
The second initiative, also offered by UConn’s Lieberman Abrahamic Program, was a six-week course titled “Entrepreneurship through an Abrahamic Lens,” which drew nearly 50 students from across the US, Israel, Morocco, Syria, the Palestinian Territories, and the Gulf. Participants explored how the legacies of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam influence entrepreneurship – and how these cultural values can support innovation in emerging economies.
Post-course surveys revealed that students felt “inspired and enriched” by the experience, with many describing academic exchange as a catalyst for long-term cultural understanding and regional economic integration.
Beyond war
To some, university courses and hackathons may seem trivial against the backdrop of war and geopolitical uncertainty. But the students participating in these programs represent the region’s next generation of teachers, diplomats, technologists, and civic leaders. Their exposure to cross-cultural collaboration may have effects far beyond the classroom.
Meanwhile, despite regional unrest, momentum behind the Abraham Accords persists. Countries from Mauritania and Indonesia to Lebanon have quietly explored possibilities for normalization. And while Saudi Arabia’s participation remains the ultimate prize – likely postponed until the Gaza conflict ends – interest has not evaporated.
True, neither the Accords nor academic initiatives such as our own have secured the most elusive diplomatic prize of all – a path toward ending the almost century-long Arab-Israeli conflict. But despite the longest war both sides have ever known, efforts to secure peace – even a chilly peace – have never had more regional and global support.
The Gaza ceasefire, return of the Israeli hostages, and signing of the Peace Plan in Egypt on October 13 further open the door for applying the Abraham Accords to the Israel-Palestine conflict and truly forging a lasting regional peace.
The joint statement signed by the presidents of the US, Egypt, and Turkey, along with the emir of Qatar, declared: “We strive for a comprehensive vision of peace, security, and shared prosperity in the region, founded on the principles of mutual respect and a common destiny... We jointly commit to a future of lasting peace.”
In the end, the endurance of the Abraham Accords – and the academic programs inspired by them – offers a reminder that diplomacy is not implemented only in summits and signing ceremonies.
Sometimes it is forged in classrooms, shared meals, and start-up pitches between young people who speak different languages but share common hopes. Five years after their inception, the Abraham Accords remain a rare pillar of stability in a region still convulsed by conflict.
Against the odds, they’ve become more than a treaty; they’ve become a platform – one with plenty of room left for further expansion and the enduring hope for peaceful coexistence through regional integration.■
Sercan Canbolat is an assistant professor of political science in residence and inaugural director of Abrahamic Programs at the University of Connecticut as well as a member of MENA2050 organization.
Daniel Weiner is a professor of geography and vice president for global affairs at the University of Connecticut.