President Donald Trump greets the Bahrain Foreign Minister Khalid bin Ahmed Al Khalifa at the White House, Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2020, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Donald Trump
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is presiding over the signing of historic diplomatic deals between Israel and the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain that could herald a dramatic shift in Middle East power dynamics.
Tuesday’s ceremony attracted hundreds to the South Lawn of the White House. Trump hopes it will depict him as a peacemaker at the height of his reelection campaign.
The agreements formalize the normalization of the Jewish state’s already warming relations with the two countries — and could pave the way for a broader Arab-Israeli rapprochement after decades of enmity.