US President Donald Trump raised the stakes in already delicate peace efforts in the middle east by demanding several Muslim countries to join the Abraham Accords recognising Israel as part of a deal with Iran, even as experts warn the proposal is unlikely to succeed under current regional conditions.
Trump recently called on several Muslim-majority countries, including Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Pakistan, to join the Abraham Accords and formally recognise Israel once a deal with Iran is reached. He even floated the possibility of Iran itself becoming part of the framework.
However, experts believe the proposal ignores the political realities created by the Gaza war, deepening anger towards Israel across the Arab world, and longstanding demands for Palestinian statehood.
What are the Abraham Accords?
The Abraham Accords are a set of US-brokered agreements launched during Trump’s first term in 2020 to normalise diplomatic, economic and security relations between Israel and Arab states.
The accords were first signed on September 15, 2020, between Israel, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, with Morocco and Sudan later joining the framework. Kazakhstan formally became associated with the grouping in 2025 despite already having ties with Israel.
The agreements were named after Abraham to highlight the shared roots of Judaism, Islam and Christianity. Before 2020, only Egypt and Jordan among Arab nations had officially recognised Israel.
Unlike earlier Arab positions that linked ties with Israel to the resolution of the Palestinian issue, the accords focused on trade, investment, defence cooperation and regional coordination, particularly against Iran’s growing influence.
What did Trump propose?
Trump’s latest push came during ongoing talks with Iran over a possible regional de-escalation framework. On Truth Social, Trump claimed the Abraham Accords had created a "Financial, Economic, and social boom" for participating countries.
"The Abraham Accords have been great for them, and will be even better for everybody, and bring true Power, Strength, and Peace to the Middle East," he added.
Trump said countries such as Saudi Arabia and Qatar should "immediately" join the accords after a deal with Iran is signed. He also suggested other Muslim-majority countries would follow.
"In speaking to numerous of the Great Leaders mentioned above, they would be honored, as soon as our Document is signed, to have the Islamic Republic of Iran as part of the Abraham Accords," Trump stated.
According to reports, Trump raised the proposal during a conference call with leaders and senior officials from Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, Pakistan, Turkiye, Egypt, Jordan and Bahrain.
According to Axios news, the proposal was met with silence from some leaders, particularly Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Pakistan.
Current members of Abraham Accords
The countries currently associated with the Abraham Accords are Israel, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco, Sudan and Kazakhstan.
The UAE, Bahrain and Morocco formally signed the accords, establishing diplomatic, economic and security ties with Israel. Sudan later agreed to join the framework, though it has not yet fully formalised diplomatic relations.
The Trump administration has continued efforts to expand the grouping. Kazakhstan, which had already maintained relations with Israel for decades, formally joined the framework last year despite not being an Arab nation.
Why experts say the plan is unrealistic
Analysts believe Trump is trying to combine several highly sensitive issues, Iran diplomacy, Gulf security, Arab-Israeli normalisation and Palestinian statehood, into one sweeping regional bargain.
But the timing could hardly be worse.
Public opinion across the Muslim world has hardened sharply against Israel during the Gaza war. Israel’s military campaign following Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attacks has left more than 70,000 Palestinians dead, according to Gaza health authorities.
"For most of the states named, the political cost of signing up under current conditions would be prohibitive," H A Hellyer, senior fellow at the Royal United Services Institute and Center for American Progress, told AFP.
"Gaza is ongoing, annexation of the West Bank is accelerating, Israeli forces remain in southern Lebanon, the Golan is occupied," he added.
Yossi Mekelberg, a Middle East expert at Chatham House, described Trump’s proposal as "no more than a sweetener for Israel".
"Why would these countries reward (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu after so much destruction in the region and to their interests?" he said.
Saudi Arabia remains one of the biggest obstacles to Trump’s plan. Riyadh has repeatedly maintained that it will not recognise Israel without a clear path towards an independent Palestinian state.
"For Saudi Arabia there is no incentive to join the Abraham Accords, in the current circumstances," Mekelberg said.
Former US diplomat Barbara Leaf also dismissed the chances of immediate progress. "I do not expect any of the Arab/Muslim states whose leaders spoke to President Trump on May 23 to move towards normalisation with Israel right now," she told AFP.
Pakistan publicly rejects proposal
Pakistan became the first country mentioned by Trump to openly reject the idea. Defence minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif said Islamabad would not support any arrangement that conflicted with Pakistan’s position on Palestine.
"Personally, I don't think we should join any such accord that clashes with our fundamental ideologies," Asif told Samaa TV.
"How will you sit down with those people whose word cannot be trusted even for a single day?" he added.
Reiterating Pakistan’s long-standing policy, Asif said that, "We have a very clear stance that this is not acceptable to us."
Pakistan has consistently maintained that it will only recognise Israel after the establishment of an independent Palestinian state based on pre-1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital. Islamabad also faces strong domestic pressure from religious groups and public opinion against recognising Israel.
Is Trump chasing a political win?
Some analysts believe Trump’s proposal may be aimed more at domestic politics and reassuring Israel than at achieving a realistic diplomatic breakthrough.
Abdulla Banndar Al-Etaibi, assistant professor of International Relations at Qatar University, suggested the announcement was intended to show that military escalation against Iran had produced political gains.
"The US administration needs a narrative showing that escalation was not meaningless, and that the end result has reshaped the regional environment," he posted on X.
Others believe Trump is attempting to craft a legacy-defining diplomatic deal that could strengthen his image as a global dealmaker, a finale that will almost certainly put him on track for the Nobel Peace Prize that he so openly covets.
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