The eagerly anticipated Negev Forum, originally scheduled to take place in March, has been postponed once again due to the Moroccan government’s request for rescheduling.
According to Axios, concerns raised by Arab members regarding public engagement with the right-wing Israeli government were cited as the primary reason for the initial delay.
The latest setback came when the Negev Forum, set for June 25, was requested to be rescheduled to July by the Moroccan government.
Their request was attributed to the proximity of the Islamic occasion of Eid al Adha, which begins shortly after the planned date, as Israeli officials revealed.
Apart from the shifting dates, proposed modifications pertain to both the name and composition of the Negev Forum.
The American administration and several member states have urged for a change in the group’s name, which currently refers to Israel’s Negev region.
Israeli officials, as reported by Axios, believe that employing a more general name or an acronym would facilitate the inclusion of other nations in the region.
One suggested name for the forum is the Association of Middle East and North African Countries (AMENA).
Morocco, however, put forward an alternative proposal, advocating for the name AMENA PD, which stands for the Association of Middle East and North African Countries Peace and Development.
The Negev Forum serves as a central platform for regional multilateral collaboration in areas such as water, security, climate change, economy, and health.
In March 2022, Secretary of State Tony Blinken, along with foreign ministers from Israel, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Morocco, gathered in Israel for the inaugural Negev Forum meeting.
Arab countries have been cautious in their engagement with Israel and organizing public events, especially in light of Israel’s increased power in the past year.
