Kazakhstan is joining the Abraham Accords, a set of agreements between Israel and Arab states, which U.S. President Donald Trump began brokering nearly five years ago in his first term, Trump said on Thursday evening.
“I just held a great call between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, of Israel, and President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, of Kazakhstan,” Trump stated. “Kazakhstan is the first country of my second term to join the Abraham Accords, the first of many.”
“This is a major step forward in building bridges across the world. Today, more nations are lining up to embrace peace and prosperity through my Abraham Accords,” Trump said. “We will soon announce a signing ceremony to make it official, and there are many more countries trying to join this club of strength. So much more to come in uniting countries for stability and growth. Real progress, real results.”
“Is anyone getting tired of more peace?” stated Mike Waltz, U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.
Mark Dubowitz, CEO of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, stated that “the stars continue to align for more Muslim countries to join the Abraham Accords.”
“President Trump will pick up at least six to 10 more before he leaves office in 2029,” he said.
Betsy Berns Korn and William Daroff, chair and CEO, respectively, of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, welcomed the news “warmly.”
“Strengthening and expanding this historic initiative advances Israel’s security and prosperity and marks a major step toward greater peace, stability and cooperation in the Middle East and beyond,” stated the leaders of the umbrella organization, which represents 50 groups.
The leaders said that Kazakhstan and Israel have had full diplomatic and economic ties for more than 30 years, demonstrating “their shared commitment to constructive international engagement.”
“Kazakhstan’s decision to join the Abraham Accords deepens ties between Israel and the broader Arab and Muslim world and renews the Accords as a living framework for regional cooperation,” they said.
The Conference of Presidents leaders stated that they commend Trump and that the U.S. president’s “leadership created new opportunities for diplomacy, partnership and mutual understanding across the region.”
“Kazakhstan’s entry into the Abraham Accords expands the circle of peace, stability and cooperation in the region,” they stated. “We encourage other nations to follow Kazakhstan’s example and join this transformative initiative to advance dialogue, collaboration and shared security.”
They also called on Congress to repeal the Jackson-Vanik Amendment, which restricts trade with former Soviet countries over human rights abuses, and “graduate” Kazakhstan, which they said would “affirm Kazakhstan’s modern record and strengthen the partnership that the Abraham Accords now extend.”
“For more than two decades, the Conference of Presidents has cultivated a close relationship with Kazakhstan, beginning with our first mission there 20 years ago,” the leaders said. “We have witnessed Kazakhstan’s enduring support for Jewish life, its consistent promotion of religious tolerance and its strong bilateral ties with both Israel and the United States.”
AIPAC applauded Trump for “achieving this expansion and further widening the circle of peace and reconciliation.”
“Through the Abraham Accords, the future of the Middle East can be one of peace, stability, prosperity and security,” AIPAC said. “We urge more Arab and Muslim nations to immediately join this historic partnership and finally embrace the Jewish state.”
‘Get on the peace train’
Rabbi Marc Schneier, president of the Foundation for Ethnic Understanding, has met with Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, the Kazakh president, several times in Astana.
“In joining the Abraham Accords, how ironic that yet another Muslim-majority country is publicly demonstrating its support for a two-state solution, while New York City mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani refuses to recognize Israel’s right to exist as a democratic Jewish nation,” he said.
“He must get on the peace train before history leaves him behind,” the rabbi said of the mayor-elect.
Jason Brodsky, policy director at United Against Nuclear Iran, stated that Kazakhstan’s joining the accords is the “answer of the U.S. government to the absurd statement of Oman’s foreign minister, who sounded like Iran’s regime’s lawyer at the recent Manama Dialogue, that Israel, not Tehran, is the region’s most destabilizing actor.”
