Aiming to establish it’s position as the leading financial center of the Gulf, the organizers in Dubai were willing to allow the Israeli delegation, headed by Bank of Israel governor David Klein and Treasury deputy Meir Sheetrit, despite the refusal of the United Arab Emirates to recognize the Jewish state.

Nevertheless, there was relief that Israeli Finance Minister and former Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu decided not to come, ostensibly for security reasons.

According to a report in London’s Al-Hayat the local media in the emirate was instructed not to mention the presence of the Israeli delegation. “This is embarrassing on more than one level” Al-Hayat reported. Other Arab media has reacted angrily to the fact that the Israelis are accorded full status at the event in comparison to the Palestinians? relegation to “observers” and the Iraqis to “special guests”.