The historic delegation trip to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain, and Israel was named “Footsteps of the Abraham Accords” – and indeed, our remarkable journey bears some resemblance to the story of our biblical forefather. Abraham had to wait a hundred years until he became a father. We had to wait about five decades from the independence of Bahrain and the UAE until the wonderful normalization of relations with Israel and the phenomenal Israel Bonds trip that followed.

With this long wait in mind, high-ranking dignitaries of Gulf States speaking to us behind Israel Bonds podiums seemed to me like a mirage in the Arabian desert. But one night, peace became tangible. After the end of the official program for the day, we let things develop naturally without a script or an agenda. All of a sudden, I found myself in a nightclub with a group of Israel Bonds New Leadership delegates and a young Emirati aerospace engineer—citizens of the United States, Germany, Israel, and the United Arab Emirates having a great time together in Dubai. This night demonstrated that the new diplomatic relations between Israel and the UAE are complemented by wonderful connections on a personal level. Several talks with the local Jewish community, both in the UAE and in Bahrain, confirmed my impression. These citizens feel safe, welcome, and integrated.”

Economic integration was another exciting aspect of our delegation trip. Government leaders, entrepreneurs, and investors in both the UAE and Bahrain seemed very interested in doing business with members of our delegation. Some dialogues went well beyond exchanging contact information. We were certainly impressed by the inspiring can-do-attitude that is exemplified in Dubai’s omnipresent creed: “The sky is no longer the limit!” It is a way of thinking that blends well with Israel’s famous startup culture and American vision.

Moreover, this phrase perfectly describes the number of prominent speakers and guests that Israel Bonds managed to assemble for our trip. In the Gulf States, my personal highlights include talks from HE Shaikh Salman bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, Minister of Finance and National Economy in Bahrain, Ali Al Mudaifa, Chief Investment Officer of the Bahrain Economic Development Board (EDB), Safra Catz, CEO of Oracle, Talal M. Al Kaissi, CEO of G42 Cloud, and Amir Hayek, Israel’s first ambassador to the UAE. In Israel, my favorites were Avigdor Liebermann, Israel’s finance minister, Benny Gantz, Israel’s minister of defense, and of course Isaac Herzog, the president.

The sky is no longer the limit!

In the latter case, we owe the meeting to the persistence and great connections of Israel Bonds President and CEO Dani Naveh. Because Herzog canceled his agenda in Jerusalem so he could fly to Abu Dhabi and represent Israel at the official funeral service of President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed al-Nahyan of the United Arab Emirates, Dani Naveh managed to rearrange our session to accommodate Herzog’s schedule. Todah Rabah, Dani!

As we, the delegates, returned home from this incredible experience, the work didn’t stop. Quite the opposite: we are now working on our new friendships and business relationships in order to take the whole region to new heights.