An individual acquainted with the situation revealed to The Times of Israel that Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer traveled covertly to the United Arab Emirates on Sunday to arrange a potential visit by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The first Israeli minister to visit the UAE after the installation of the new administration was Dermer, who played a key role in negotiating the Abraham Accords agreement that saw Israel improve relations with Abu Dhabi while he served as ambassador to the United States.
According to the Walla news website, Dermer's visit was apparently intended to reassure Abu Dhabi over some of the far-right members of the new administration, particularly after National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir made a contentious trip to the volatile Temple Mount site earlier in January.
Tzachi Hanegbi, the chair of the national security council, traveled with Dermer as well, according to Walla.
Before stepping down from office in 2021, Netanyahu was scheduled to travel to the Gulf state for the first time, but he never made the trip. His January trip was also scheduled, but it was postponed in response to Abu Dhabi's scathing condemnation of Ben Gvir's visit.
