Trump holds out hand to Abbas
The Trump administration has given an unexpected embrace to the Palestinian leadership, inviting President Mahmoud Abbas to Washington and sending a top envoy to Ramallah on Tuesday for a warm meeting.
The Trump administration has given an unexpected embrace to the Palestinian leadership, inviting President Mahmoud Abbas to Washington and sending a top envoy to Ramallah on Tuesday for a warm meeting.
Palestinian Authority officials were concerned about the Trump administration when it took office, fearing that it would sideline them and rubber-stamp all of the Israeli government’s positions. Concerns grew further in Ramallah last month, when Trump suggested that he may be open to dropping the -two-state solution.
But Abbas is headed to Washington, after Trump spoke to him by phone and issued an invitation. Trump’s special peace envoy Jason Greenblatt was then face to face with Abbas in what was a more optimistic meeting than most would have thought possible a few weeks ago. “President Abbas told Mr Greenblatt that under President Trump’s leadership a historic deal is possible, and it will enhance security throughout the region,” said an American statement after the meeting.
The statement added, “President Abbas said he looked forward to discussing the possibilities for peace directly with President Trump during his upcoming visit to Washington.”
There is speculation that the Ramallah and Washington meetings may represent an attempt by Trump to set new ground rules for the US-Palestinian relationship.
“For the elite around Abbas, this is a positive development,” the Palestinian pollster Khalil Shikaki told The AJN. Abbas lacks popular support among the Palestinians and is widely seen as becoming less and less relevant, and his allies hope that an embrace by Trump will strengthen his image domestically. The price that Trump is thought to expect in return is Palestinian agreement to negotiate with Israel with fewer preconditions, and a crackdown on incitement.
“President Abbas committed to preventing inflammatory rhetoric and incitement,” the Americans reported.
Greenblatt kept emphasis on the future of the Palestinians, even during his time with Israelis. He spent five hours with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in what he called a “very positive and productive meeting”. The statement released afterwards contained the traditional promise to support Israel from danger. Greenblatt “reaffirmed President Trump’s commitment to Israel’s security”. But the statement was largely concerned with Israeli-Palestinian issues.
There were talks “relating to settlement construction in the hope of working out an approach that is consistent with the goal of advancing peace and security”. Greenblatt “stressed how important enabling the growth of the Palestinian economy and improving the quality of life for Palestinians are to President Trump”. Netanyahu “assured Mr Greenblatt that he was fully committed to broadening prosperity for Palestinians and sees it as a means of bolstering the prospects for peace”.
NATHAN JEFFAY
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