US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Tuesday that the Trump administration will be renewing peace efforts in Israel and Palestine following the upcoming Israeli elections in April.
During a speech given via satellite at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, did not specify the measures the US would be taking, but said it “won’t be a US-driven process.”
“Ultimately, the Israelis and the Palestinians will have to come to an agreement. But we think that the foundations that we have laid and the work that we’ll do immediately following the Israeli elections will set conditions where we can have a constructive conversation,” Pompeo said.
“It seems to me that we’re at a point in time where there are ways that we can resolve the primary differences and encourage those two places, the Israelis and the Palestinians, to come together to resolve their differences and get a solution there that has bedeviled the world for an awfully long time,” he said.
Pompeo went on to say that “we’ve begun to share elements of this across the region,” and that Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law and senior advisor, and special representative Jason Greenblatt had been leading the development of the peace plan.
The day before Pompeo’s announcement at the forum, Greenblatt and senior PLO official Dr. Hanan Ashrawi were embroiled in a Twitter battle after Ashrawi said the US administration had “zero credibility.”
Greenblatt responded, saying “you may dislike our policies & decisions, but to say we have ‘zero credibility’ is simply not factual. @POTUS has kept his commitments, such as recognizing #Jerusalem as the capital of #Israel & moving our Embassy to #Jerusalem.”
Last week, Greenblatt took to Twitter to deny reports by Israel’s Channel 13 news report that claimed Trump’s plan proposes a Palestinian state in 85-90 percent of the West Bank, with the sovereign capital of Palestine located in “most of the Arab neighborhoods” of East Jerusalem.
According to the Channel 13 report, the Trump administration is expected to propose various land swaps, in which Israel would see its sovereignty extended to portion of the West Bank, in exchange for Palestinian-majority portions of Israeli territory.
Major settlement blocs would also reportedly be annexed to Israel, while smaller “isolated” –which are tend to be more nationalistic and violent towards Palestinians — would not be forcibly evacuated, but would also not be allowed to expand.
The report, citing “a senior American official” in the Trump administration, said the so-called “deal of the century” proposes that Jerusalem be divided, with Israel maintaining sovereignty in West Jerusalem, parts of East Jerusalem and the “holy basin,” including the Old City and its immediate environs.
It reportedly stipulated that the “holy basin,” home to the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, Church of Holy Sepulchre, and other holy sites, would be “jointly run” by Israel, Palestine, Jordan and “possibly other countries.”
“While I respect @BarakRavid, his report on Israel’s Ch. 13 is not accurate. Speculation about the content of the plan is not helpful. Very few people on the planet know what is in it… for now…,” Greenblatt said on Twitter on January 17th.
Meanwhile, the Jerusalem Post reported on Monday that the Trump administration, specifically Kushner, is hoping to roll out plans for an Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement before the launch of the US 2020 presidential campaign.
“They expect the Israelis to come to the table swiftly, and hope the Palestinians will see merit in the plan with regional encouragement – but understand that certain elements are likely to aggravate both sides,” the Israeli news website said, citing anonymous senior US officials.
Trump has touted his “deal of the century” for years now, ever since he began campaigning for president.
While the exact details of the plan have remained elusive, save a few leaks and speculation from Israeli and international media, the Trump administration has slowly been ticking off most of the Israeli right’s wishlist, while pulling essential funding for agencies like UNRWA, USAID, and PA government funding in efforts to force the Palestinians to the negotiating table.
Given the Trump administration’s tactics in occupied Palestinian territory over the past year, which Palestinian officials have called “political blackmail,” many Palestinians anticipate the US plan will attempt to erase any Palestinian claims to Jerusalem, and force them to once again compromise their rights for the sake of Israel and the settlers.
“Greenblatt responded, saying “you may dislike our policies & decisions, but to say we have ‘zero credibility’ is simply not factual. @POTUS has kept his commitments, such as recognizing #Jerusalem as the capital of #Israel & moving our Embassy to Jerusalem.”
What a staggering sheer obtuse response.
Greenblatt is also on record saying, “The settlements are not obstacles to peace.”
Can’t wait to see the new Ford Edsel unveiled.
“@POTUS has kept his commitments, such as recognizing #Jerusalem as the capital of #Israel & moving our Embassy to #Jerusalem.”” pompouseo
correction !!.
POTUS has kept his commitments to the zionists.He made none to the Palestinians so none to be broken.
“During a speech given via satellite at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, did not specify the measures the US would be taking, but said it “won’t be a US-driven process.”
Of course not.It will be an AIPAC driven process with Adelson,s foot on the pedal.
It,s bad enough we have a maniac like trump with his finger on the button but add to that a, looney like Pompeo as Sec of State and a VP Christian fundamentalist fanatic , 2nd in command.
Even zionists with self inflicted myopia should be concerned that end times may not be too far away.
Of course the israelis are going to rush to the table, this so called ‘peace plan’ favors them. The Palestinians should take note of the Democrats at this moment and say No !
The isolated fanatical illegal settler squats will be allowed to stay but not expand? Oh hell no. israelis are free to carry deadly weapons with them wherever they go; non-Israelis are not for starters.
Of course, no mention of security for the Palestinians from the illegal settler squats who will not stop their fanatical, messianic rampage. It should be made very clear that of course the illegal settler squats can stay and live in Palestine if they want to but they will be subject to Palestinians laws – up to and including home dispossession.
Wait, all we will hear from the israelis is ‘security’ – Israelis deserve security, recognition, and a normal life free from terror and incitement. Palestinians should be free to govern themselves in their own viable state, in peace and dignity as well. Yes they do. Do not Palestinians deserve ‘security, recognition and a normal life free from terror and incitement too’?
I think I’ll grab a bottle of wine, a bag of popcorn, a nice comfy chair and enjoy the sh*t show that is israel to come.
Any plan which deviates more than marginally from the Olmert Plan or from the Geneva Beilin Abed Rabbo plan will be rejected out of hand. If one is talking about an Israeli Palestinian peace accord it will have to be pretty darn close to one of those two plans for it to be taken seriously. (True Olmert never published his plan, but its outline seems to be widely known. as far as the Geneva so called accord: that plan is down to the finest detail, a thorough plan well known in detail.) For Trump’s team to reinvent the wheel that favors one side in a gross departure from the previously “negotiated” plan will not result in success. I don’t see how that can happen. I don’t know what further “pressure” Trump plans to place on the Palestinians.
It would have been interesting if this plan would be released before the Israeli election. A farfetched idea, but it would have been interesting to see how the parties would run against each other to reject parts of the proposal. but after the election is hardly interesting at all. only in the context of the generally destructive nature of the trump presidency it is one more detail to worry about.