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After being away from the national spotlight following the start of Robert Mueller's investigation, Jared Kushner has come out in a rare public appearance and echoed the President's sentiments that stopping regional aggression and extremism in the Middle East can only be solved with a peace agreement between Israel and Palestine first.
After Trump appointed Kushner to a senior White House aide and proponent for the "ultimate deal", little has been heard about the plan the White House is devising to achieve peace in the Middle East. However, Americans aren't the only ones, with Israel, Palestine, Arab governments, and international backers all lacking vital information about the deal.
Three members of Kushner’s team, including him, are Orthodox Jews. Jason Greenblatt, the White House special representative for international negotiations, who used to be the executive vice president and chief legal officer of the Trump Organization. David Friedman, the administration’s ambassador to Israel, who used to be Trump’s bankruptcy lawyer and, like Kushner, a financial contributor to the Israeli settlement movement in the past. The fourth team member is Dina Powell, deputy national security adviser and an Egyptian American who is a Coptic Christian.
With Israeli officials maintaining their opposing stance to a two-state solution and Palestinian anxiety about what little rumours that have been heard about the plan, tension regarding the conflict has been augmented by the fact that Trump has to make a decision regarding a move of the U.S. embassy in Israel to Jerusalem by Monday. Per 1995 legislation, he also has the ability to postpone it 6 months into the future. A potential move would recognize Israel as the sole owner of Jerusalem, and discount the Palestinians to it, something Jordan, a key U.S. ally, objects to.
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1. Do you think Trump will sign the waiver and move the embassy from Tel Aviv, or will he postpone the moving of the embassy like all presidents before him?
2. Considering the background of Kushner's team, is it necessarily qualified to find peace in the Middle East?
3. Do you think Kushner's donation to various pro-settlement organizations will cloud his judgment in finding a fair solution for both sides of the land struggle?
5 comments:
I believe it is definitely commendable that Kushner and Trump are making efforts to resolve the Israel-Palestine conflict which has ranged from almost 80 years now. However, I am very curious what their final solution will be, considering that all of their plan has been hidden so far, and even key parties such as Israel and Palestine are unclear on the details which the US has in plan. In the long run, all parties involved ought to gain some degree of flexibility in order for Congress to work. For example, Israel zero-tolerance policy towards a two-state system seems slightly strange and forceful. It will be interesting if the US embassy is moved from Tel-Aviv to Jerusalem, but with the history of that city, I would not be surprised if violent outraged surged in the meantime towards the formation of the new location of the embassy.
I don't think Kushner will be able to negotiate a successful peace deal. It appears that Trump delegated him to negotiations out of nepotism. He certainly isn't the most qualified person when it comes to this diplomacy. Based off of his history of pro-settlement donations, it is hard to believe he will give negotiations a legitimate effort. If Obama couldn't find a way for a working peace, a clear supporter of Israeli control of the West Bank has virtually no chance to succeed.
Due past failures to ensure peace, I believe that Trump administration are unable to negotiate a peace deal. I believe that due to the poor relations between Israelis and Palestinians peace will need to come in form of a two state solution. However, due to Israel's unwillingness to accept a two state solution the possibility of true, lasting peace will be a challenge.
I think it is a good thing for the Trump administration to try to find peace in the Israel-Palestine conflict. However, being that this is one of the more complicated issues, I don't think they can solve it by themselves, rather they need the help of the UN, who Trump has criticized, and the rest of the international community to help solve this issue. Israel is a very powerful figure, considering it supposedly has nuclear weapons, and its unwillingness to accept a two state solution, it will take the collective effort is I would be surprised if Trump decides to move the embassy to Jerusalem, as it would provide outrage and controversy in the international community, as well as for the millions of Palestinians living in the city. Considering the amount of violence that has happened with the Israelis and Palestinians on the West Bank, it would be a safer option to not have America on their bad side.
The thought that the lack of progress in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is due to Israel's unwillingness to accept a Two-State solution, is the reason for decades of negotiation failures. Accepting that the Palestinians' lack of recognition of the rights of the Jews to their own land is the main obstacle will come along way in promoting peace. Nowhere in the world peace was achieved when one side doesn't recognize the other's rights. Both peoples have a right to that land, and where the border will cross is a matter of negotiations. Israeli population have overwhelmingly accepted this fact. Palestinians have not. Ask any Palestinian in which part of that land they would accept an independent Jewish State and you will never receive a straight answer. In their view, Jews have no rights to any square inch of that land. And every time anyone differs with them, they generate violence. Jews have the same rights (if not more) to Jerusalem than Palestinians.
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