An initiative that began as a quiet suggestion from Argentina’s ambassador to Israel has grown, in little more than a year, into one of the most consequential diplomatic projects linking the Middle East and Latin America. Known as the Isaac Accords, the framework binds Israel and Argentina — with a growing list of partners across the Western Hemisphere — into a shared agenda on security, technology, trade and faith-rooted solidarity.

The name is not accidental. It deliberately echoes the 2020 Abraham Accords, which normalized relations between Israel and several Arab states under the first Trump administration. Where Isaac carried forward Abraham’s legacy in the biblical narrative, organizers say this new framework is meant to carry that same spirit of partnership westward, into the Americas.

From a Declined Prize to a Diplomatic Framework

The idea was first floated in June 2025 by Rabbi Shimon Axel Wahnish, Argentina’s ambassador to Israel and a longtime personal advisor to President Javier Milei. It gained real momentum months later, when Milei was named the 2025 Genesis Prize laureate — sometimes called the “Jewish Nobel” — becoming the first non-Jewish recipient and the first sitting head of state to win it.

Rather than keep the $1 million award, Milei redirected it as seed capital for the initiative. The Genesis Prize Foundation used those funds to stand up the American Friends of the Isaac Accords (AFOIA), a New York-based nonprofit incorporated in August 2025 that now serves as the project’s main operational and philanthropic engine, run day-to-day by former U.S. Ambassador to Costa Rica S. Fitzgerald “Fitz” Haney.

A Jerusalem Signing, Nine Months Later

The Accords were formally launched on April 19, 2026, in Jerusalem, during a state visit by President Milei. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Milei unveiled the framework together, backed by a Joint Declaration signed by both governments and a set of supporting memoranda signed by their foreign ministries. American officials, including then-Ambassador Mike Huckabee, were present or voiced support for the effort.

The declaration itself is not a formal treaty but a statement of shared intent. In it, the two governments describe the Accords as a strategic framework meant to draw Argentina, Israel and like-minded partners across the hemisphere closer together in defense of democratic values, and in confronting terrorism, antisemitism and drug trafficking. It singles out concern over Iran’s efforts to build networks and influence across Latin America, and calls for closer coordination in international forums alongside expanded cooperation in innovation, technology and trade. The text explicitly credits the Abraham Accords as its inspiration and invites other hemispheric nations that share its values to join.

What Is Actually Being Built

Beyond the declaration’s language, the Accords have already produced a string of concrete initiatives spanning security, technology and travel:

• Security & counterterrorism cooperation Expanded intelligence-sharing and coordinated action against terrorism, antisemitism, drug trafficking and Iranian-linked influence, including several countries formally designating Hamas, Hezbollah and the IRGC as terrorist organizations. Argentina moved first; Ecuador, Costa Rica and Paraguay have advanced similar steps.
• An AI and technology partnership A memorandum links Israel’s National AI Directorate with Argentina’s science and innovation ministry, covering joint model development, workforce training, research partnerships and shared participation in global tech-governance discussions.
• A direct air route El Al is launching its first-ever nonstop South American service, connecting Tel Aviv and Buenos Aires twice weekly on Boeing 787-9 aircraft starting late November 2026, with government support helping offset the roughly sixteen-hour route’s costs.
• Embassies and Jerusalem recognition Argentina has advanced plans to move its embassy to Jerusalem, while Ecuador and Costa Rica are opening or planning trade and innovation offices there with diplomatic standing — part of a broader push for hemispheric recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
• Regional expansion Uruguay, Panama and Costa Rica were named as early priority partners. Brazil’s parliamentary caucus has signed a declaration of shared principles, and Ecuador, Paraguay, Bolivia, Chile and Honduras have engaged at varying levels. A June 2026 legislators’ conference in Buenos Aires, involving representatives from roughly a dozen countries, backed further expansion, adoption of the IHRA antisemitism definition, embassy relocations and anti-terror coordination. A dedicated Isaac Accords Fund has also been set up with the Inter-American Development Bank.

Building Ties Beyond Governments

AFOIA has also funded people-to-people programs intended to outlast any single administration — including medical training delivered by Israel’s Rambam Health Care Campus in Costa Rica, student and influencer delegations, and education efforts aimed at countering antisemitism. Organizers describe the goal as building durable relationships across governments, parliaments, universities, businesses and civil society, rather than a one-time diplomatic announcement.

Supporters and Skeptics

Supporters frame the Accords as both values-driven and interest-driven: rooted in a shared Judeo-Christian tradition and commitment to democracy, while delivering practical gains in trade, technology and security. Critics — largely in progressive and pro-Palestinian outlets — have characterized the project as a Christian-Zionist-aligned, right-leaning diplomatic push. Primary sources connected to the initiative continue to emphasize the practical cooperation on the ground rather than the ideological debate around it.

As of late August 2026, the Isaac Accords remain a work in progress — advancing through parliamentary resolutions, bilateral memoranda and grassroots programs rather than a single binding treaty. With new countries reportedly weighing whether to join and the first direct Tel Aviv–Buenos Aires flights still months away, the framework’s next test will be whether it can translate a shared declaration into lasting institutions.