“Israelis and Palestinians can Make a Deal,” Says Trump

After a meeting this morning with Palestinian Authority President Abbas, Trump addressed a large crowd of Israelis at the Israel Museum. His message was clear: there will be peace.

This issue has long plagued the office of the President, but through his discussion, he is positive that a deal will be made during his presidency. With this confidence, many expected him to lay out the prospective plan, but he was silent on this topic. What was picked up by those who observed Trump’s speech and actions, and the speech made by Abbas is that they are still miles apart.

Everything that Trump did seemed to heavily favor the Israelis. To begin, he was consistently drawing on the Jewish history in the area. How Jerusalem is a “sacred city,” and also speaking of the ties that the Jewish people have to the city. They hope to create a “united” capital that is inhabited by Israelis and is under Israeli control.

Not only did he speak highly of the importance that Jerusalem plays in the Jewish faith, he also spoke of the ties that the United States has had with the Israelites. Since the end of World War II, the United States has done all that they can to help the Israelis stand on their own. Lately, the relationship has taken a hit, but Trump also spoke of how they have gotten better, and continue to get better.

Even with all these showings, it is still clear that the two sides are far from an agreement after Abbas made his own remarks on his meeting with Trump. He was very critical of the way the Israelis have been treating the families of the 1,000 Palestinians who are imprisoned in Jerusalem.

He also made it quite clear that Palestine would view a successful peace-solution as the “Two State” solution. This means arriving at a solution that is determined by a mix of the International Law, UN Resolutions, and the Arab Peace Initiative that was designed over ten years ago. In exchange, Palestine would help Israel gain recognition as a state from the other Arab states.

In terms of the global war on terror, the beginnings of peace between Palestine and Israel are very important because this linkage could mean the beginning of a united front across the Middle East. One of the biggest barriers to a united front throughout history has been the conflict between Israel and Palestine, but if they can find peace and all parties involved are happy these nations will be able to work together to eradicate the extremists that make this world unsafe for all who inhabit it.

Although Trump was very confident that the United States would build a plan that would create peace in the region, those in the audience fell silent when he made these remarks showing their skepticism to this promise which has been made multiple times throughout the last forty years.