Trump aides Kushner and Greenblatt to visit Israel, Palestinians this week

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Trump aides Kushner and Greenblatt to visit Israel, Palestinians this week

 

FILE PHOTO - White House senior advisor Jared Kushner arrives to join U.S. President Donald Trump and the rest of the U.S. delegation to meet with Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud at the Royal Court in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia May 20, 2017. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst/File Photo

 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump is sending two top aides to Jerusalem and Ramallah this week to discuss potential next steps in his bid to restart Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, a White House official said on Sunday.

 

Going on the trip will be White House senior adviser Jared Kushner, who is Trump's son-in-law and husband of his daughter Ivanka Trump, and Jason Greenblatt, a top national security aide. Greenblatt will arrive in the region on Monday and Kushner on Wednesday.

 

The talks follow Trump's discussions last month with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. Behind-the-scenes conversations have been taking place since the Trump trip, the White House official said.

 

"Excited to be travelling back to Israel and the Pal. Territories to continue the discussion about the possibility of peace", Greenblatt tweeted on Sunday night.

 

Kushner and Greenblatt will have meetings in Jerusalem and Ramallah to hear directly from the Israeli and Palestinian leadership "about their priorities and potential next steps," the official said.

 

"President Trump has made it clear that working towards achieving a lasting peace agreement between the Israelis and Palestinians is a top priority for him. He strongly believes that peace is possible," the official said.

 

Kushner and Greenblatt are working with Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and White House national security adviser H.R. McMaster on the Middle East issue.

 

"It is important to remember that forging a historic peace agreement will take time and to the extent that there is progress, there are likely to be many visits by both Mr. Kushner and Mr. Greenblatt, sometimes together and sometimes separately, to the region and possibly many trips by Israeli and Palestinian negotiators to Washington D.C. or other locations as they pursue substantive talks," the official said.

 

(Reporting By Steve Holland; Editing by Michael Perry)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2017-06-19

[soalbundy]

Oh dear, how dreadful, another mid-East war.

[Thorgal]

To know that Trump endorsed Jerusalem as eternal capital of Israel during his campaign.

Strange that he's sending these biased envoys anyway to Ramallah...


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[malibukid]

don't bet on it

[Morch]

1 hour ago, soalbundy said:

Oh dear, how dreadful, another mid-East war.

 

What war would that be?

[soalbundy]

Just now, Morch said:

 

What war would that be?

The one that will start when his aides leave

[Morch]

59 minutes ago, Thorgal said:

To know that Trump endorsed Jerusalem as eternal capital of Israel during his campaign.

Strange that he's sending these biased envoys anyway to Ramallah...


Sent from my iPad using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

 

To know that you'll post some nonsense or the other.

Trump made a whole lot of promises and statements during his campaign. We all know how most of them turned out. Trump also said he'll move the US Embassy, what of it?

So far, despite presumptions with regard to supposed bias, there wasn't a whole lot of that expressed by Greenblatt. Kushner's involvement is less clear (or less covered by media).

[Jingthing]

13 minutes ago, Morch said:

 

To know that you'll post some nonsense or the other.

Trump made a whole lot of promises and statements during his campaign. We all know how most of them turned out. Trump also said he'll move the US Embassy, what of it?

So far, despite presumptions with regard to supposed bias, there wasn't a whole lot of that expressed by Greenblatt. Kushner's involvement is less clear (or less covered by media).

Yes, Kushner (who is now under investigation) is definitely a mysterious character. Does that man actually ever speak? Is he mute? 

 

Much as I detest trump (with good reasons) if his particular brand of political lunacy can bring about peace between Israel and the Palestinians, well, that would be great.

 

So would green moon cheese pizza. 

 

Neither will happen. 

Edited June 19, 2017 by Jingthing

[Morch]

38 minutes ago, soalbundy said:

The one that will start when his aides leave

[Morch]

28 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

Yes, Kushner (who is now under investigation) is definitely a mysterious character. Does that man actually ever speak? Is he mute? 

 

Much as I detest trump (with good reasons) if his particular brand of political lunacy can bring about peace between Israel and the Palestinians, well, that would be great.

 

So would green moon cheese pizza. 

 

Neither will happen. 

 

That's pretty much in line with how Kushner is  described by business associates, so nothing new there. Think he learned a lesson on exposure from his dad.

 

At this point, all parties involved seem terrified of getting on Trump's bad side, so they more or less go along with the program. Much of the hard-line talk is aimed at easing domestic pressures and shoring up political support. At the same time, there is some advancement on localized issues, which probably wouldn't happen under other circumstances.

 

Not that I would bet something will come out of it - there's the usual way things go pear shaped, and then there's the unpredictable nature of Trump's presidency. But something is better than nothing, and even if the effort fails, perhaps bits will stick.

[Jingthing]

In any case, expectations are so very low that any president can have a meaningful impact on this conflict, that this is a one case where trump doesn't really need to stress. 

[Prbkk]

Many fine brains have worked on peace deals to no avail...and Trump throws in the creepy son in law. Beyond bizarre. 

[Thorgal]

 
To know that you'll post some nonsense or the other.
Trump made a whole lot of promises and statements during his campaign. We all know how most of them turned out. Trump also said he'll move the US Embassy, what of it?
So far, despite presumptions with regard to supposed bias, there wasn't a whole lot of that expressed by Greenblatt. Kushner's involvement is less clear (or less covered by media).

About 'The Eternal Capital' :

https://onej.org/trump-jerusalem-is-the-eternal-capital-of-the-jewish-people/

Greenblatt en Kushner have actually 'right to return' to Israel, while many Palestinians don't...so yes, their 'sudden' peace negotiations are biased...




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[Jingthing]

3 hours ago, Prbkk said:

Many fine brains have worked on peace deals to no avail...and Trump throws in the creepy son in law. Beyond bizarre. 

It's definitely contrarian sending those guys.

Very trumpist though.

Need brain surgery? Call the gardener! 

[Enoon]

12 hours ago, Jingthing said:

Yes, Kushner (who is now under investigation) is definitely a mysterious character. Does that man actually ever speak? Is he mute? 

 

Much as I detest trump (with good reasons) if his particular brand of political lunacy can bring about peace between Israel and the Palestinians, well, that would be great.

 

So would green moon cheese pizza. 

 

Neither will happen. 

 

Kushner is the living, breathing (if it actually needs to process the composition of gases that make up the earths atmosphere) evidence that.........they're here:

 

"The Invaders, alien beings from a dying planet. Their destination: the Earth. Their purpose: to make it their world. David Vincent has seen them. For him, it began one lost night on a lonely country road, looking for a shortcut that he never found. It began with a closed deserted diner, and a man too long without sleep to continue his journey. It began with the landing of a craft from another galaxy. Now David Vincent knows that the Invaders are here, that they have taken human form. Somehow he must convince a disbelieving world that the nightmare has already begun."

 

 

Edited June 19, 2017 by Enoon

[Redline]

He's gonna wear his Peace in the Middle East T shirt

[pegman]

Isn't Kushner a flight  risk being under criminal investigation and all that.

It's counter intuitive that's for sure. A couple of Orthodox Jews, one a former armed guard at a West Bank settlement, as honest brokers. Don't be surprised when they come back baffled that the Palistinian didn't drop all their long standing demands.

So what's next, sending his bud Nigel Farage to broker a Brexit deal?

[Morch]

16 hours ago, Thorgal said:

 

About 'The Eternal Capital' :

https://onej.org/trump-jerusalem-is-the-eternal-capital-of-the-jewish-people/

Greenblatt en Kushner have actually 'right to return' to Israel, while many Palestinians don't...so yes, their 'sudden' peace negotiations are biased...




Sent from my iPad using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

 

 

Trump says a lot of things. There are many references, on multiple topics to the gaps between his statements, his actions and reality. Can't have it both ways. Either you take what he says seriously, or you don't. Looks like you cherry pick the bits fitting your position. As I recall, Trump also said (on the February press conference with Netanyahu): "As with any successful negotiation, both sides will have to make compromises.  You know that, right?". Just an example.

 

As for the peace negotiations (which they are not - these are preliminaries aimed at getting there), nothing "sudden" about them.  Trump declared his wish to engage the sides during and after the campaign. Sort of customary for US presidents to enter the fray early on their term. Inserting the "right of return" is just another irrelevant talking point as far as this topic goes.

 

 

[Morch]

8 hours ago, pegman said:

Isn't Kushner a flight  risk being under criminal investigation and all that.

It's counter intuitive that's for sure. A couple of Orthodox Jews, one a former armed guard at a West Bank settlement, as honest brokers. Don't be surprised when they come back baffled that the Palistinian didn't drop all their long standing demands.

So what's next, sending his bud Nigel Farage to broker a Brexit deal?

Greenblatt wasn't an "armed guard" as such, but occasionally carried out guard duties while studying in one of the settlements, back when. Not quite the same thing.

 

I do agree Trump's choices are counter intuitive, but then they do not differ much from many of his other cabinet and official appointments. His focus seems to be on perceived loyalty rather than relevant experience or skills.

 

That said, Greenblatt's own positions, even if biased, do not indicate he's a hardliner. So far, despite a few posted opinions, he seems to be getting along with both sides, and there wasn't much by way of negative criticism from the Palestinian side. IMO, that's more to do with current talks centering around concrete administrative and economic measures, leaving out as much of the emotional and historical baggage as possible. Also, I don't think his job description is an "honest broker", more a "facilitator", as the position of the current US administration is that sides should engage directly.

 

The more significant bit, IMO, is the name that is not mentioned - Trump's appointed US Ambassador to Israel, Friedman. Now he's a true hardliner, and another controversial appointment. That's probably because his positions would be out of sync with Greenblatt's and the administration's current efforts.

 

It is worth mentioning that much of the measures on the table now are based on ideas and plans formulated during Obama's term. Back then, it was easier for the Israeli government to push back such initiatives by playing on the right-left divides in both countries. With Trump in place, harder to play this angle. An instance of a long standing adage that it's easier for a right wing government to carry through peace agreements. Of course, it also reflects (again) on the gaps between Trump's rhetoric - criticizing the Obama administration while adopting policies.

[Jingthing]

OMG.
He speaks!


http://digg.com/video/jared-kushners-voice