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Palestinian President Abbas says peace closer with Trump engaged

By Jeff Mason and Yara Bayoumy

 

U.S. President Donald Trump meets with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas during the U.N. General Assembly in New York, U.S., September 20, 2017. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

 

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas expressed optimism on Wednesday about reaching a peace agreement with Israel this year and said U.S. President Donald Trump's commitment to the issue would help create the "deal of the century" in the region.

 

Abbas met Trump on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly gathering of world leaders in New York and thanked him for his support.

 

"If this is any proof to anything ... it attests to the seriousness of your Excellency, Mr. President, to achieve the deal of the century in the Middle East during this year or in the coming months, God willing," Abbas said through an interpreter.

 

Trump said his team of advisers was working very hard on the issue, as were Israel, Saudi Arabia and other nations.

 

"I think we have a very, very good chance, and I certainly will devote everything within my heart and within my soul to get that deal made," Trump said.

 

"We're at a very important juncture, there's a small period of time, and we're going to see what we can do. There can be no promises, obviously," he said.

 

Abbas noted that the Palestinians had met with Trump's team more than 20 times since the U.S. president entered office in January, and he said the fact that Jews and Muslims were celebrating a new year was a positive sign.

 

"This is a very sweet coincidence that we can celebrate the new year together within a 24-hour period, and if this is an indication to anything, it means that we can coexist peacefully together," Abbas said.

 

Later at the U.N. gathering, Abbas urged the 193-nation body to end the "Israeli occupation of the state of Palestine" within a set timetable.

 

He also borrowed a campaign line of Trump's, using the phrase "draining the swamp" as an argument for addressing the conflict between Palestinians and Israelis. Trump used a similar phrase as a presidential candidate to criticise politicians and policy making in Washington.

 

"Beyond any doubt, draining the swamp of colonial occupation of our land and ending its unjust, oppressive and illegal practices against our people would greatly affect the fight against terrorism, depriving terrorist groups of one of the key rallying cries they exploit to promote their repugnant ideas," Abbas said in his prepared remarks.

 

Trump met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu earlier in the week. The Israeli and Palestinian leaders both went out of their way to praise the U.S. president.

 

The White House played down both meetings in terms of their significance toward peace talks on one of the world's most intractable conflicts that has defied the peacemaking efforts of several U.S. administrations going back decades.

 

The Palestinians seek to establish an independent state in the Israeli occupied West Bank, territory captured in the 1967 Middle East war and the Gaza Strip, with East Jerusalem as its capital.

 

The Palestinian Authority's ambassador to the United States, Husam Zomlot, said “the meeting was forward-looking, and the conversation was deep and frank between the two allies.” 

 

The Palestinian Authority said in a statement Abbas told Trump that "peace can be achieved through implementing the two-state solution based on the 1967 borders." Abbas also said "the illegal Israeli settlements policy poses an immediate threat" to that.

 

For at least two decades, the goal of U.S.-led diplomacy has been a “two-state solution”, meaning an independent Palestinian state living side-by-side and at peace with Israel.

 

But neither Trump nor his aides have publicly recommitted to a two-state solution, instead saying it is up to the two parties to work out in peace talks.

 

Abbas’ insistence on a return to 1967 pre-war borders is something Israel has repeatedly rejected.

 

(Reporting by Jeff Mason and Yara Bayoumy; Editing by Grant McCool and James Dalgleish)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2017-09-21

[klauskunkel]

Trump is now busy writing his acceptance speech for the Nobel Peace Price:

Firstly I want to thank me, myself and I for the outstanding job I have done, and then my good friends Ben from Israel and Abbas from Patagonia, without you following my lead it would have been slightly more difficult. Akbar to both of you!

[Srikcir]

Not a mention of DT's Middle East envoy for peace negotiations - Jared Kushner.

If history holds true to form, sometime within the next 30-60 days PM Benjamin Netanyahu will announce another illegal settlement development to assure negotiations stall.

 

[Jingthing]

19 minutes ago, Srikcir said:

Not a mention of DT's Middle East envoy for peace negotiations - Jared Kushner.

If history holds true to form, sometime within the next 30-60 days PM Benjamin Netanyahu will announce another illegal settlement development to assure negotiations stall.

 

Jared may have legal problems soon. Like his Jailbird Papa. 

[William T]

16 hours ago, Srikcir said:

Not a mention of DT's Middle East envoy for peace negotiations - Jared Kushner.

If history holds true to form, sometime within the next 30-60 days PM Benjamin Netanyahu will announce another illegal settlement development to assure negotiations stall.

 

Kushner's dismissal of the nuances of the conflict has already been an issue. Last month, when Kushner met with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, a Palestinian official told Haaretz that Kushner "sounded like Netanyahu's advisers and not like fair arbiters" and that they were "greatly disappointed" after the meeting. Abbas himself was "reportedly furious."

 

Kushner  has been quoted as saying there may be no solution. Netanyahu has seen to that.

[Morch]

19 hours ago, Srikcir said:

Not a mention of DT's Middle East envoy for peace negotiations - Jared Kushner.

If history holds true to form, sometime within the next 30-60 days PM Benjamin Netanyahu will announce another illegal settlement development to assure negotiations stall.

 

 

Kushner's been relatively out of the public eye for about three weeks now, probably related to the Russian intervention investigations and to Kelly's restructuring of White House work. There was a leaked quote from August, in which he said that there might not be any solution, and that he wasn't sure Trump's administration brought anything new to the table (or something along these lines).

 

While the comment regarding Netanyahu isn't without basis, it ought to be pointed out that there are no negotiations to stall, and that derailing the process is hardly exclusive to either Netanyahu, or Israel.

[Morch]

2 hours ago, William T said:

Kushner's dismissal of the nuances of the conflict has already been an issue. Last month, when Kushner met with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, a Palestinian official told Haaretz that Kushner "sounded like Netanyahu's advisers and not like fair arbiters" and that they were "greatly disappointed" after the meeting. Abbas himself was "reportedly furious."

 

Kushner  has been quoted as saying there may be no solution. Netanyahu has seen to that.

 

Not that I see Kushner as an obvious choice for chief negotiator (quite the opposite, if anything), nor do I credit him with in-depth understanding all issues relating to the conflict or having a clue as to navigating between the sides - but at the same time, not inclined to take partisan reports at face value.

 

It's not as if Abbas is new to this, and spanking the US representative every now and then isn't all bad. If not overdoing it. Plays well for the home crowd, and may help lower demands in the next round. A certain amount of drama is almost mandatory, and to be expected.

 

As for laying it all at Netanyahu's feet - again, while hardly a supporter, this would be ignoring other major factors and players. A main one, which featured in almost all Palestinian related news recently, is the ongoing rift and the attempts to achieve reconciliation between the rival Palestinian factions.

[William T]

Netanyahu offers lip servce to a two state solution while following on from Sharon has done his best to ensure this can never happen by building and expanding more  settlements in occupied Palestinian land which they have no intention of giving up..

 

If Israel was serious about negotiating peace based on a two-state solution let them produce a map showing what land they would be prepared to give back to the Palestinians so that they could have a viable state..

 

We all know this will never happen.

[Morch]

3 hours ago, William T said:

Netanyahu offers lip servce to a two state solution while following on from Sharon has done his best to ensure this can never happen by building and expanding more  settlements in occupied Palestinian land which they have no intention of giving up..

 

If Israel was serious about negotiating peace based on a two-state solution let them produce a map showing what land they would be prepared to give back to the Palestinians so that they could have a viable state..

 

We all know this will never happen.

 

No argument over Netanyahu's stance as far as a two-state solution goes. He'll stall and avoid making any decisions, as long as he can.

 

As for presenting maps, wrong. On various phases of negotiations, offers were made. Arafat rejected such an offer, while Abbas failed to respond. There could be an argument made that the governments making those offers weren't in a political position to carry out such plans, but it doesn't change the facts - offers were made.

 

And ignoring issues such as the rift between Fatah and Hamas, or the latter's standing position with regard to engaging Israel, does not help. Same goes for considering what support Abbas actually represents, and remembering his age - what comes next?

 

Intransigence is something both sides are adept at.

[Scott]

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