On September 24, 2026, senior officials from the United States, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco, and Kazakhstan met privately in midtown Manhattan for the first official multilateral gathering of Abraham Accords participants since January 2023. Convened by the N7 Foundation on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, the roundtable was deliberately practical rather than theatrical: its purpose was to determine how diplomatic normalization could produce cooperation in technology, trade, investment, energy, water, food security, transport, and strategic affairs. (CBS News)

The meeting mattered not because it produced a dramatic treaty or a new political declaration, but because it demonstrated that the Accords’ multilateral framework had survived the disruption caused by the October 7, 2023, Hamas attacks and the wars that followed. Nearly three years after the last comparable gathering, officials from the original participating countries were again willing to sit together—and Kazakhstan joined them for the first time. U.S. Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Allison Hooker described the moment as evidence that the Accords were “moving forward again.”

A Return to Multilateral Diplomacy

The Abraham Accords were launched in 2020 during President Donald Trump’s first administration, beginning with the normalization of relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. Morocco subsequently joined the framework, while Sudan became associated with the broader declaration.

Before October 7, 2023, the framework appeared to be gaining momentum. The Hamas attack and the ensuing Gaza war, however, transformed the political environment. Although some bilateral relationships continued, public multilateral diplomacy became considerably more difficult.

The N7 Foundation said participants reaffirmed the principles of coexistence, mutual understanding, and cooperation, emphasizing that the Accords should deliver practical results capable of promoting regional stability, security, and economic development.

Kazakhstan Changes the Framework

Kazakhstan’s participation was the meeting’s most consequential development — its first official engagement with the Accords group, marking the framework’s movement beyond its original Arab-Israeli core into Central Asia.

President Trump announced Kazakhstan’s planned accession after meeting President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev in Washington in November 2025. A U.S. State Department fact sheet described Kazakhstan as the first country to join the Accords during Trump’s second term, connecting the announcement to proposed cooperation in critical minerals, transportation, artificial intelligence, information technology, and agricultural machinery.

Israel and Kazakhstan established diplomatic relations in 1992, so accession formalizes an existing relationship rather than creating recognition where none previously existed. Ambassador Erzhan Kazykhan presented the framework as a means of strengthening political dialogue, trade and investment, technological cooperation, and transport links.

“Moving forward again.” — Allison Hooker, U.S. Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs

Why Kazakhstan Is Valuable

Critical minerals and supply chains

Kazakhstan possesses significant mineral resources relevant to U.S. efforts to diversify supply chains. The two governments agreed to deepen cooperation on exploration, processing, and development of critical minerals, including a proposed tungsten mining and processing project involving U.S. investment.

Technology and infrastructure

Kazakhstan has expressed interest in Israeli expertise in agriculture, water management, cybersecurity, and digital infrastructure. Proposed commercial arrangements listed by the State Department involve Boeing aircraft, Wabtec locomotives, John Deere agricultural equipment, and Leidos air-traffic systems.

Strategic balancing

Kazakhstan’s multi-vector foreign policy seeks constructive relations with several major powers rather than placing itself wholly within one geopolitical camp. Joining the Accords strengthens ties with Washington, Israel, and Gulf states without abandoning existing relationships with Russia and China — a relatively low-risk decision for Astana.

Practical Cooperation, By Sector

N7’s Role

The N7 Foundation functioned as the meeting’s quiet institutional facilitator, organizing multilateral gatherings involving Accords countries since 2021. The September meeting was held in a private office setting rather than as a highly publicized government summit, allowing participants to focus on implementation without creating expectations of an immediate breakthrough.

N7 Chairman Jeffrey M. Talpins said the next phase should involve “deepening the relationships that already exist and identifying practical opportunities for countries to work together.” N7 President Oren Eisner argued the Accords’ full potential would be realized through cooperation producing tangible benefits for people and economies. The foundation’s January 2026 AI conference brought together more than 100 policymakers, scientists, and investors from the U.S., Israel, UAE, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Singapore, and elsewhere.

The Foundation’s Longer-Term Agenda

N7’s future strategy rests on three connected objectives: deepening existing partnerships in sectors that produce measurable outcomes; expanding participation, using Kazakhstan as a model for countries already maintaining relations with Israel, including states in Central Asia and the Caucasus; and creating durable mechanisms — regular senior-official meetings, sector-specific working groups, and research networks — so the framework survives leadership changes and political shocks.

The Test Will Be Delivery

The next stage will be judged by what happens after the meeting: signed investment agreements, functioning transport links, joint research, shared water and agricultural projects, critical-mineral partnerships, and technology initiatives that produce measurable benefits.

Kazakhstan’s participation gives the framework a new geographic and strategic dimension, connecting the Middle East to Central Asia and linking normalization diplomacy with critical minerals, technology, transport, and supply-chain resilience. The New York meeting represented more than a reunion of existing partners — it was an attempt to redefine what the Abraham Accords are for.

The original phase was primarily about establishing diplomatic relations. The emerging phase is about building a regional network capable of producing practical cooperation. Whether that ambition succeeds will depend not on the symbolism of Kazakhstan’s inclusion, but on whether the participating governments can turn renewed contact into durable results.