New Country to Join Abraham Accords: US Envoy
The United States is expected to announce on November 6 that another nation will join the Abraham Accords, a framework through which several countries have established formal ties with Israel. The announcement was previewed by President Donald Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff.
"I'm flying back to Washington tonight because we're going to announce, tonight, another country coming into the Abraham Accords," — Steve Witkoff at the America Business Forum in Miami.
When asked by Fox News interviewer Bret Baier which country was joining, Witkoff responded:
"I don't know if it's out yet."
According to Axios, the country expected to join is Kazakhstan, a Central Asian republic that has maintained diplomatic relations with Israel for decades. The move is reportedly aimed at helping to "reinvigorate" the accords. Kazakhstan’s president is among five Central Asian leaders set to meet President Trump at the White House in November.
Background on the Abraham Accords
During Trump’s first term, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Morocco normalized relations with Israel under the Abraham Accords in 2020. Saudi Arabia had also been in discussions to formalize ties, which would mark a historic step given its role as the guardian of Islam’s two holiest sites.
However, Riyadh paused these efforts following the outbreak of war in Gaza after Hamas's October 2023 attack on Israel. The Saudi government has maintained that normalization cannot proceed without concrete progress toward establishing an independent Palestinian state, a stance opposed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Author’s Summary
The U.S. plans to announce Kazakhstan’s entry into the Abraham Accords, signaling renewed regional diplomacy as President Trump meets Central Asian leaders in Washington.