OCCUPIED JERUSALEM: Israel and the United Arab Emirates said Friday they had agreed on the terms of a free trade agreement to boost commercial relations following their normalisation of ties.

Israel described as “historic” the deal abolishing customs duties on “95 percent of the products” exchanged between the Jewish state and Gulf Arab country.

The 2020 normalisation deal reached between the two countries was one of a series of US-brokered agreements known as the Abraham Accords, and trade between them last year totalled some $900 million dollars, according to Israeli figures.

Talks for a free trade agreement began in November and were concluded Friday after four rounds of negotiations, including last month in Egypt between Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and the UAE’s de facto leader, Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan.