UAE to send first official delegation to Israel

An official delegation from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) will head to Israel on Tuesday, in the first visit since the two countries signed an agreement establishing official ties.

According to the UAE Foreign Ministry Communications Director Hend al-Otaiba, the Emirati delegation is led by Minister of State for Financial Affairs Obaid al-Tayer and Economy Minister Abdulla Bin Touq.

The delegation will be accompanied by U.S. Treasury Secretary, Steven Mnuchin, al-Otaiba said in a tweet.

The visit comes one day after the UAE cabinet approved the country’s deal normalizing ties with Israel.

The UAE and Bahrain, which also signed a deal at the same ceremony, became the first Gulf states to establish official ties with Israel.

Mnuchin has also accompanied an Israeli delegation visiting Bahrain on Sunday.

dpa/NAN