Link to article- https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/12/3/bahrain-open-to-imports-from-illegal-israeli-settlements
With a recent formalization of relations between Israel and Bahrain, along with the United Arab Emirates, imports from Israel will not be divided based on those made within Israel and those that are from illegal settlements. This decision made by Bahrain is highly controversial due to their prior trade relationship with Israel and its illegal settlements and the overall effects that this change will have on the Arab market. Inevitably, this decision would inflate Bahrain’s economy and make it difficult for the rest of the region to grow their economies. It is predicted that in 2021, trade between Israel and Bahrain will be worth about $220 million.
Bahrain has become a highly developed and wealthy country over many decades, which is very impressive based on the state of most of the other countries in their region. This new deal with Israel will benefit them immensely, but could lead to retaliation by other Arab countries. This complicates matters for poorer countries that need trade to increase, especially with the effects that COVID-19 has had on many countries’ economies this year. Although this is a smart move for Bahrain; from a regional and global perspective, the long term effects may outweigh the benefits.
It is likely that this situation will end with a more realist approach and that Bahrain will continue to act in self-interest. However, the best outcome would most likely come from a liberal perspective. This would entail that Bahrain is able to look past their short term success that would come from this trade and realize the long term effects it would have on the rest of their region. It would be especially important at this time because of the results of the pandemic so far. A more liberal approach would allow the countries that have been affected more heavily by the pandemic to get their economies back under control, and then they would be able to come to a better agreement over the status of trade in Israel.