Israel’s Minister of Economy and Industry Orna Barbivai and UAE Minister of Economy Abdulla bin Touq Al Marri present the Free Trade Agreement they signed, which is the first such agreement Israel has with an Arab county, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates May 31, 2022. Anuj Taylor Strap Studios-GPO/Handout via REUTERS

The Manufacturers Association of Israel (MAI) on Wednesday signed a memorandum of understanding with the UAE’s Ras Al Khaimah Economic Zone (RAKEZ) intended to create investment opportunities for industrial companies in both countries.

MAI’s deputy CEO Hagai Edri said he hoped the agreement would lead toward meaningful industrial cooperation between the two countries.

“We see RAKEZ as a potential strategic partner that will allow Israeli industries to expand to other markets while maintaining their main industrial activity in Israel in a way that will benefit both organizations, their members and their respective economies,” Edri said.

Ras Al Khaimah is the northernmost of the UAE’s seven emirates, with a smaller population and economy than better-known Dubai or Abu Dhabi. RAKEZ was founded in 2017 to help establish companies in Ras Al Khaimah, while MAI is an umbrella organization for Israeli industrialists in sectors including high-tech, textiles, chemicals and pharmaceuticals.

After normalizing relations in 2020 as part of the Abraham Accords, the UAE and Israel signed a free trade agreement in May 2022 with the goal of reaching $10 billion in annual bilateral trade. The agreement came into effect in March.

Trade between the UAE and Israel has grown rapidly since the two countries established relations. According to an analysis by the Abraham Accords Peace Institute, bilateral trade between Israel and the UAE for the first five months of 2023 stood at $1.29 billion, a nearly 42% increase from the same period in 2022.