Article link
Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-law and senior adviser, along with Jason Greenblatt, special representative for international negotiations continue working on an Arab-Israeli peace plan that they began a year ago. Despite Trump's declaration last month that Jerusalem will become Israel's capital and the President's later threat to cut aid that the U.S. gives to Palestinians, Kushner and Greenblatt remain confident that their plan will appeal to both sides. These two men report to the President, so Trump's actions speak louder than theirs and it may be difficult to sell a peace plan that contradicts the President's approach. Given the difficulties in creating a peace over the past 70 years, it seems certain that no peace between Israel and Palestine will come easily.
Discussion Questions
1. Do Trump's declarations and threats in December and January undermine peace proposals that members of his administration are still working on?
2. Will Great Britain and France withholding judgement until the full peace plan is on the table set an example that Palestinian leaders will follow?
3. Ultimately will the Trump administration be able to create a lasting peace between Israel and Palestine in the Middle East? Would it be in the form of a one state or two state solution?
I honestly don't think that the Trump administration will ever be able to create a lasting peace between Israel and Palestine, as his actions and declaration of Jerusalem becoming the Israeli capital has undermined the Palestinian's trust in him. Another issue is that religiously and culturally, Israel and Palestine are far too culturally different to be able to truly assimilate into eachother's culture. Like in india, I believe that it should likely just have to be a two state solution, and Trump should focus on mediating the conflict between Israel and Palestine rather than attempting to unite the nations into one. -JUNG HAYE
ReplyDeleteI disagree with Jung Haye because, even if he has stated that he will achieve something, that won't undermine the peace negotiations. If Israel and Palestine can come to an agreement with or with out the help of the US it doesn't matter what Trump set out to do, and the agreement will be made. Either that or he would have to show enough of a clear favoritism towards Israel that the UN or other presiding body deems him unfit to help resolve this conflict.
ReplyDeleteLike Jung Haye, I personally do not believe that a lasting peace between Israel and Palestine will be formed during the Trump administration. Because the two different ethnic groups have been fighting for 70 years, as seen in the summary by Mr. Felder, it is not that simple to just solve the conflict. Although Kushner and Greenblatt may be working diligently to solve the dispute between the Palestinians and the Jews, there is already too much conflict between them to be solved in a matter of 4 years. Since the US has not already been able to solve the problem despite constant efforts for the past couple of years, and Trump already harming the trust between the US and the Palestinians, it is highly unlikely that the conflict between the two will come to an end in the 4 years that Trump is in office.
ReplyDeleteI also agree to Jung Haye's comment where he says that Palestine and Israel are culturally different to create a peaceful treaty. They most likely will struggle because of their differences. Also I believe Trump should stay out of the negotiation between Palestine and Israel because it might disrupt the negotiation However, why did the U.S. cut off their aid to Palestine in the first place?
ReplyDeleteTrump's declarations directly undermine what Kushner and Greenblatt have been working on, showcasing the divisiveness of the administration, and Trump's volatile ability to speak without regards to repercussions. Because of this, the U.S. will almost surely not be able to create lasting peace between Israel and Palestine. Their involvement is limited, and the conflict has been going on too long for a divisive administration to fix. This shouldn't end any hope for the U.S. to be involved in negotiations, as we are still a very present power in international diplomacy, even with Trump as our president.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Jennifer about how Trump simply understates the work of this peace plan created by Kushner and Greenblatt. However due to the reputation of the US to be a meddlesome country, we may have caused a bigger problem with the Palestinians as President Trump threatens to cut them off. We have clearly favored the Israelis, perhaps strategically to gain something from these lands after the conflict has been resolved. However this disagreement is far too complicated and extensive, hence peace by unification seems to be an unsuitable possibility. In 2017, more than a hundred Israelis were wounded by 99 Palestine terrorist attacks, emphasizing neither is willing to negotiate terms for peace in this prolonged conflict (http://www.jpost.com/Arab-Israeli-Conflict/Terrorists-killed-20-Israelis-in-2017-533008). The US can try to negotiate between Palestine and Israel but there may not be a happy ending to look forward to while Trump's administration runs office.
ReplyDeleteI feel that as long as as the administration can properly present the peace proposal, while the president's initiative may hurt the relation with the Palestine officials, they will probably be able to come to a proper agreement that doesn't involve idiotic moves like outright declaring partiality to one side even when they are the mediator. Conversely, it can be said that, ignoring Trump's decision's content, what he had done had actually brought the stalemate going on into an end. As long as the two sides don't end up stuck on the same issues again,then with the US planned peace proposal, the whole issue could be smoother out without much problems.
ReplyDeleteTrump's decision to threaten Palestine indicates that the US favors Israel. This makes it impossible for the US to effectively create a peace treaty because they're benefiting from one side. There is no reason why the US should be involved in a several decade dispute that doesn't involve them. Trump pushed down Palestine and later on give Israel their capital, two things that bypass negotiations and seem like actions on an impulse. It seems that Palestine's priorities were sacrificed in order to keep the US on good terms with Israel.
ReplyDeleteI do not believe that the Trump Administration will be able to create a lasting peace between Israel and Palestine. From what we have seen of Trump's actions in office, it most likely will not be possible for them to create a solution between the two countries. First of, by threatening to cut aid to Palestine from the US, Trump's administration is obviously favoring on the side of the Israelis. By doing this, the US will simply increase tensions and the two countries and further push back a solution rather than bring it into reality.
ReplyDelete