Sign up for our daily briefing
Make your busy days simpler with Axios AM/PM. Catch up on what's new and why it matters in just 5 minutes.
Catch up on coronavirus stories and special reports, curated by Mike Allen everyday
Catch up on coronavirus stories and special reports, curated by Mike Allen everyday
Denver news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Denver
Des Moines news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Des Moines
Minneapolis-St. Paul news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Twin Cities
Tampa Bay news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Tampa Bay
Charlotte news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Charlotte
German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas (L) with Israeli Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi in June. Photo: Menahem Kahana. Photo: AFP via Getty
The foreign ministers of Israel and the UAE will hold meetings in Berlin on Tuesday, two weeks after they signed a normalization agreement at the White House.
Why it matters: This will be the first-ever publicly announced meeting between the Israeli and Emirati foreign ministers after many secret meetings in the past. They'll continue work on a series of bilateral agreements.
The backstory: The Berlin meeting is the initiative of German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas. It comes after Israel-UAE meetings that were to be held in Israel last week took place instead over Zoom due to Israel's coronavirus lockdown.
- This is an opportunity for the Germans to get involved in the normalization process, something they'd been interested in doing, Israeli officials say.
What to expect: In addition to the bilateral talks, there will be a trilateral meeting with Maas over dinner.
- Maas and his Israeli and Emirati counterparts will also visit the Holocaust Museum in Berlin and lay a wreath at the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe.
What they're saying: “The courageous peace agreement between Israel and the United Arab Emirates is the first good news in the Middle East for a long time — and at the same time an opportunity for new movement in the dialogue between Israelis and Palestinians," Maas said in a statement.