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[rooster59]

Pence trip to Middle East overshadowed by Trump's Jerusalem decision

By Jeff Mason

 

FILE PHOTO - U.S. President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence participate in a signing ceremony for Space Policy Directive at the White House in Washington D.C., U.S. December 11, 2017. REUTERS/Carlos Barria

 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Vice President Mike Pence will underscore the U.S. partnership with Israel during a trip to the Middle East next week while seeking to shore up U.S. relations with the Arab world after President Donald Trump recognised Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

 

Pence, a strong supporter of Trump's decision, will spend three days in the region with stops in Israel and Egypt, the first high-level official to visit after the president reversed decades of U.S. policy and announced the United States would start the process of moving its embassy from Tel Aviv.

 

The status of Jerusalem, which holds Muslim, Jewish and Christian holy sites, is one of the thorniest obstacles to a peace deal between Israel and the Palestinians, who were furious over Trump's move and have declined to meet with Pence. The international community does not recognise Israeli sovereignty over the full city.

 

Israel considers Jerusalem its eternal capital, while Palestinians want the capital of an independent state of theirs to be in the city’s eastern sector, which Israel captured in the 1967 Middle East war and annexed in a move never recognised internationally.

 

Pence, an evangelical Christian who had planned to highlight the plight of Christian minorities during his trip, will not meet with Palestinian Christians or with officials from the Coptic Christian church, who declined a meeting in response to the U.S. move.

 

Officials said Pence still would discuss the persecution of Christians as well as the Jerusalem decision, countering Iran, defeating Islamic State militants and fighting "extremist ideology."

 

The dates of his trip have been in flux because of Trump's U.S. tax overhaul push and the possibility that Pence would be needed to provide a tie-breaking vote in the Senate.

 

He is now scheduled to depart Washington on Tuesday, arriving in Cairo on Wednesday for a meeting with Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.

 

He flies to Israel later on Wednesday and will meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Reuven Rivlin, deliver a speech to the Israeli parliament, and visit Jerusalem's Western Wall.

 

"We can’t envision a scenario under which the Western Wall would not be part of Israel," one administration official told reporters on a conference call.

 

The trip will be dominated by the continuing fallout from Trump's announcement.

 

"The last couple weeks in the region have been a reaction to the Jerusalem decision," another administration official said. "This trip is part of ... the ending of that chapter, and the beginning of what I will say is the next chapter."

 

That view may not be shared by Arab leaders. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said the United States abdicated its responsibility as a mediator on peace and Pence's planned visit to Bethlehem was scrapped.

 

Pence does not plan to encourage Egypt to pressure the Palestinians to return to the negotiating table, an official said.

 

"We think it's appropriate for the Palestinians to digest what has happened. And once they review the president's remarks clearly, they will realize that nothing has changed in terms of being able to reach an historic peace agreement," he said.

 

Arab legislators have announced they will stay away from Pence's speech to the Knesset.

 

In Egypt, the Sisi government will have a chance to discuss the recent U.S. decision to suspend some of Egypt's military aid package because of Washington's concerns over civil liberties.

 

Egypt is a strategic U.S. partner because of its control of the Suez Canal and Sisi presents himself as a bulwark against Islamist militants in the region.

 

On Friday Pence departs Israel for Germany, where he will visit U.S. troops on his way back to Washington.

 

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2017-12-16

[rudi49jr]

Pence is a bible-thumping nincompoop who believes that man and dinosaurs lived side by side on this planet 6,000 years ago, and other assorted fairy tales. And that's the man who will be president when The Donald has been escorted from the WH wearing handcuffs. From the frying pan into the fire, comes to mind.

[Morch]

1 hour ago, rudi49jr said:

Pence is a bible-thumping nincompoop who believes that man and dinosaurs lived side by side on this planet 6,000 years ago, and other assorted fairy tales. And that's the man who will be president when The Donald has been escorted from the WH wearing handcuffs. From the frying pan into the fire, comes to mind.

 

He should fit in the region quite well, then...

Also, perhaps not too much to hope he'll be getting the boot as well if Trump goes down.

 

With regard to the upcoming trip, guess that the consequences of Trump's announcement were known in advance. The trip will now focus on making sure Egypt stays the course, and perhaps counter balance some of Putin's efforts to muscle in. As far as the Israeli and Palestinian legs of the journey go, the latter is off, and the former is guaranteed to be warm while lacking substance.

 

While Pence's visit is expected to be boycotted by the Palestinians,  it would be interesting to see if the same would apply for Trump's negotiations envoy, Greenblatt, who will be coming along and staying on a bit. Them statements by unnamed officials regarding final status issues won't be much help, though.

[Srikcir]

2 hours ago, Morch said:

The trip will now focus on making sure Egypt stays the course

What course?

7 hours ago, rooster59 said:

Pence does not plan to encourage Egypt to pressure the Palestinians to return to the negotiating table

 

[Morch]

9 minutes ago, Srikcir said:

What course?

 

 

I don't think that Pence will make a play to pressure Egypt into getting the Palestinians to negotiate, but would take the relevant comment in the OP with a grain of salt. At the very least, he will do his best to reassure Egypt that the USA still plans to offer a peace plan, and pacify al-Sisi into not withdrawing his involvement.

 

Egypt plays an important part mediating the Palestinian reconciliation process, and has considerable influence with both.  Sorting their internal disputes is not only a Palestinian priority, but also for the Trump administration. If there is a peace plan which will be presented next year, it will require some semblance of Palestinian unity (hopefully without adopting too much of the Hamas's stance).