EXCLUSIVE: UAE sought Gaza war assessment

from 'father' of Israel's Iron Dome system

Leaked emails show Yousef Otaiba contacted Uzi Rubin via top pro-Israel analyst,
in latest evidence of growing ties between UAE and Israel

Meetings were suggested shortly after Israel's eight-day war with Hamas in 2012
(AFP)

Clayton Swisher-Thursday 17 August

2017
The UAE's top diplomat in America sought a battle damage assessment of Israel's
2012 eight-day war on Gaza from the "father" of Israel's Iron Dome missile
defence system, according to leaked emails obtained by Middle East Eye.
Yousef Otaiba was introduced to Uzi Rubin by a senior pro-Israel analyst in
Washington, although it was unclear if the two ever met. But the emails, obtained
by the GlobalLeaks hacking group, show growing military and diplomatic ties
between the Gulf kingdom and Israel.
Robert Satloff, the executive director of a Washington-based pro-Israel think-
tank, wrote to Yousef Otaiba on 19 December 2012 to suggest a meeting with Uzi
Rubin, a former Israeli brigadier general who led the Israel government's missile
defence organisation. Within three days, Rubin and Otaiba were emailing directly.
The exchange came a month after Israel's Operation Pillar of Defence against
targets in Gaza, which according to UN figures killed 174 Palestinians, 107 of them
civilians including 33 children. There were six Israelis casualties, two of whom
were soldiers.
I would be interested in hearing how it did in Gaza recently
- Yousef Otaiba, UAE ambassador
Rubin visited Washington to praise the success of Israel's Iron Dome system in
defending against missiles fired from Gaza during the eight-day war. He told a
forum of guests: "In strategic terms, the recent conflict was largely a 'push-
button' war."
Satloff, who hosted Rubin, wrote afterwards to Otaiba: "You were on my mind
yesterday when I heard a compelling presentation by the father of Israel's Iron
Dome anti-missile system, Uzi Rubin.
"He closed his presentation with comments about the applicability of the system
to Gulf states facing Iranian missiles. I assume your side has heard from him and
his colleagues directly; if that's not the case, I can certainly set something up."
Otaiba replied "I have not met with Uzi. I would be interested in hearing how it
did in Gaza recently. I read the press commentary on its performance but would
be interested to hear more specifically."
'Let me know when you're in DC'
Satloff then sought permission to introduce Rubin to enable a future meeting, to
which Otaiba agreed. The communications appeared to quickly pay off - in an
email direct to Rubin on 22 December, 2012, Otaiba said: "Let me know when
you're next in DC."
Rubin replied that he had already returned home, and signed off: "Perhaps next
time. Regards - Uzi."
Satloff did not deny his email exchange with Otaiba. In an email to the MEE, he
said: "I do not know if the people in question ever met but I do not believe the
specific meeting to which you refer ever happened.
"And by the way, I don't 'broker' meetings. The Washington Institute, like other
research organisations/think-tanks, regularly arranges meetings... that bring
together all sorts of people, from all range of governments and backgrounds, in a
wide variety of formats."
The contacts between Otaiba and Rubin are among a number of conversations
captured between the diplomat and Satloff, who has long served the Washington
Institute for Near East Policy (WINEP), a spinoff of the powerful American Israel
Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) pressure group whose analysts and scholars are
almost exclusively pro-Israel.
Satloff opened his note by thanking the UAE ambassador for "the generous new
year's gift", without specifying what he had been given.
In his reply to MEE, Satloff said he did not recall what the gift was. He stated his
institute's policy states staff can accept personal gifts from foreign governments
worth less than $20.

Israel has trumpeted the Iron Dome system's effectiveness against rockets from
Gaza (AFP)
Dinner with the ambassador
Satloff solicited Otaiba in February 2012 for an exclusive dinner, that he can feel
free to pay for: "This is a bit presumptuous but would consider hosting our most
important lay leaders - our board of directors - for dinner at your home? They
(about 15 or so) will be in town for a meeting... on the evening of Tuesday, 6
March."
Sensing opportunity, Otaiba replied: "That's a great idea. Happy to host such a
powerful group on such a critical topic. My only request is we keep it off the
record and discreet."
WINEP's board includes such figures as Peter Lowy, the executive director of
Westfield and son of Australian billionaire and right-wing Israel supporter Frank
Lowy.
It also includes its founder, Barbi Weinberg, a former AIPAC vice
president. Weinberg, along with AIPAC's then-deputy director of research Martin
Indyk, helped create WINEP as a separate entity in the 1980s to offer distance for
their pro-Israeli policy ideas, a recognition of the "image problem" encountered
by authoring US policy ideas on AIPAC letterhead.
After the March 2012 dinner, Satloff wrote to Otaiba to inform him "you earned a
houseful of friends last night", and heaped praise on the UAE ambassador for his
"striking candour" with WINEP's board, "opening" their "eyes to the real anxiety
UAE has re: Iran".
Otaiba assured Satloff: "I truly enjoyed the conversation. My main message was
the alignment of Israel and many of the Arab countries when it comes to Iran."
Satloff would not disclose who attended the dinner, but told MEE such events
with a "broad range of US and foreign officials" are a "regular occurrence" and
that to "suggest or imply otherwise underscores the conspiratorial, rather than
newsworthy tenor of your inquiry".

Yousef
Otaiba, the UAE's man in Washington (AFP)
High-level interactions
Satloff would continue to seek more engagements with his Emirati friend. Since
1996 WINEP has hosted a range of Israeli military and intelligence officers as
visiting fellows in its Washington offices, partly to influence Washington's debate
on matters including Palestine and Iran.
Satloff asked Otaiba to consider allowing UAE officials to work at WINEP as
visiting fellows, a sign of how closely regarded the Gulf country has become in the
eyes of America's hawkish pro-Israel community.
Otaiba had earlier promised Satloff to "look into this one and see how our military
folks respond".
In his reply to MEE, Satloff said he had made similar approaches to various
governments, hosting Israeli, Jordanian and Turkish officers, and that WINEP had
hosted a diplomat from the French foreign ministry as well as US diplomats and
other government officials. He added: Regrettably, we have not yet had the
opportunity to host an Emirati officer.
Otaiba later proposed to help WINEP "find some Emirati and perhaps non-Emirati
speakers to discuss MB and radicalisation in the region", referring to the Muslim
Brotherhood, whose affiliates have won popular elections in Egypt, Tunisia,
Turkey and Kuwait and which the UAE and Israel together demonise as threats.
We have never solicited or accepted any donation from any UAE source
- Robert Satloff, Washington Institute for Near East Policy
Otaiba also wrote Satloff to give WINEP high marks for an article by David Pollock,
who wrote a January 2016 piece in "defence of the US-Saudi relationship".
"I wanted to let you know," wrote Otaiba. "I think the piece [by] David Pollock on
Saudi is arguably the best analysis I've seen so far... try to find a way to get it
published in a mainstream publication because this piece needs as much
exposure as possible!"
By return Satloff lamented trying "all the usual mainstream outlets but were
rejected", which he saw as "a sad sign of the times".
Otaiba, whose Washington connections apparently far exceed think-tanks, then
brokered his own offer to help, which Satloff declined: "Not even Politico? I can
pull some strings there if needed."
In his reply to MEE, Satloff wrote: "By longstanding policy, the Washington
Institute does not solicit or accept donations from any foreign source - individual,
corporation, government or foundation. We rely solely on financial support from
American sources. Specifically, we have never solicited or accepted any donation
from any UAE source."

Uzi Rubin was in direct contact with Otaiba (screengrab)

UAE and Israel grow closer
The UAE does not have official diplomatic relations with Israel. However, in
November 2015, the government of Abu Dhabi allowed Israel to establish a
diplomatic office for the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), based
in the Emirati capital, though Israeli officials stressed it was to be accredited solely
to IRENA, an intergovernmental organisation.
MEE and Haaretz reported in 2015 that a private jet was flying at least twice a
week between Tel Aviv and Abu Dhabi. A 2012 report by the French Intelligence
Online website said AGT International had signed a contract worth $800m to
provide Abu Dhabi's Critical National Infrastructure Authority with "surveillance
cameras, electronic fences and sensors to monitor strategic infrastructure and oil
fields".
The corporate intelligence website described AGT's owner Mati Kochavi as "the
Israeli businessman most active in Abu Dhabi".
Politically, convergence on policy matters between the UAE and Israel have led to
increased interactions, however, as the Emirates, along with Saudi Arabia, each
adopt a more aggressive posture against neighbouring Iran, which Israel also
considers a top threat.
Open relations with Israel would also provoke outrage among Palestinian factions,
many of whom maintain as a "card" that normalisation of diplomatic ties between
Israel and 57 Arab and Muslim countries can only occur after Palestinians are
allowed to live free in a state of their own.
This article is available in French on Middle East Eye French edition.
Posted by Thavam