The Abraham Accords countries have held their first official meeting since the Hamas attacks on Israel on 7 October 2023, with Kazakhstan joining the discussions for the first time as it considers entering the agreement.
Officials from the United States, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Morocco met in New York on Thursday. Kazakhstan, which expressed an interest in joining the accords last year, also sent representatives.
The US delegation was led by Allison Hooker, the State Department’s under-secretary for political affairs. The meeting was hosted by the N7 Foundation, which has brought together representatives of the Abraham Accords countries since 2021.
“Nearly three years after October 7, the Abraham Accords countries are back together,” Ms Hooker said, describing the gathering as an important sign that the agreements were “moving forward again”.
The accords, first signed in 2020 during Donald Trump’s first term as US president, established diplomatic relations between Israel and several Muslim countries. The United Arab Emirates and Bahrain became the first Gulf Arab states to formally recognise Israel, followed by Morocco.
Expansion of the agreements had been gathering pace before the Hamas attack, with Saudi Arabia and other Muslim countries seen as potential future participants. The attack and the subsequent wars in Gaza, Lebanon and Iran stalled those efforts.
Mr Trump announced Kazakhstan’s intention to join during a meeting with its president, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, in November 2025. He later said a signing ceremony would be announced and that other countries were seeking to join.
A Kazakhstan embassy official said the New York meeting represented a practical step towards membership, highlighting potential cooperation in technology and transport.
“We are very excited about joining the Abraham Accords and all the partnership can do,” he said. “We are interested in collaborations in technology and transport. Together we can do more than each individual country could do alone.”
Jeffrey Talpins, founder of the N7 Foundation and chair of the meeting, said the next stage would focus on strengthening existing relationships and finding practical areas for cooperation.
“The Abraham Accords have demonstrated what is possible when countries come together around shared interests with a common vision for a more integrated and prosperous region,” he said.
