Biden declares Trump two-state solution dead and buried

 

An apparent attempt by the outgoing US Ambassador to Israel — David Friedman — to preserve the two-state solution proposed in former President Trump’s Vision for Peace (Vision) — lasted about two hours— before being shredded in the garbage bin of history by the newly-elected President Biden.

This is the only conclusion one can reasonably draw after a second U.S. Ambassador to Israel page — in French — headed U.S. Ambassador to Israel, the West Bank and Gaza—was published on Twitter at about the same time as President Biden’s swearing in ceremony was beginning (See images following).

Republican Senator Rick Scott of Florida blamed the new Biden administration for the Embassy’s second Twitter page:

“The Biden Admin title change for the @USAmbIsrael shows the Democrats’ hostility to Israel”

 Other comments similarly blamed the Biden administration.

These criticisms seem misplaced — given the timing of the second page’s appearance on Twitter.

The second page was not a forgery — as a spokesman for the American embassy told The Times of Israel:

“This is not a policy change or indication of future policy change.”

The spokesman was simultaneously confirming that Trump’s two-state solution was still America’s policy objective in the West Bank and Gaza:

• A Palestinian Arab State in Gaza and about 70% of the West Bank—plus an area currently within Israel’s sovereign borders and 
• Israeli sovereignty being extended in the remaining 30% of the West Bank

That Friedman — not the incoming Biden administration — authorised this second Embassy Twitter page — is further supported by the fact that Friedman posted his final Tweet — as Ambassador — on both Embassy pages:

“Signing off now, moving to @DavidM_Friedman. Thank you President Trump for the honor of a lifetime. Thank you @MikePence,@MikePompeo,@SteveMnuchin1,Jared Kushner,@AviBerkow45,@Robertcobrienand @LighstoneA…”

The Jewish Chronicle also reported:

“In a further comment, the US Embassy said: “It was an inadvertent edit, and not reflective of a policy change.”

An “inadvertent edit” it certainly was not.

Someone in the Embassy had created the second Embassy page — pre-Biden — and someone in the new 2 hours-old Biden administration had apparently directed the Embassy — after Friedman had left— to de-activate that page. Representing Trump’s two-state solution as American current policy going forward under the Biden administration had come to a crushing halt.

A Washington Post article in August 2020 summed up Biden and the Democrats position on Trump’s two-state solution:

“The Democrats, led by presidential candidate Joe Biden, are determined to change course should they come to power. There are open discussions within the caucus about conditioning the billions in aid given to Israel on the basis of its actions. Biden and virtually every Democrat in Congress were vocal in their opposition to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s now-stalled plans to start annexing parts of the West Bank.”

Any attempt by Israel to extend its sovereignty unilaterally into any part of the West Bank — incorrectly termed “annexation” — will assuredly be opposed by President Biden.

Trump’s Vision acknowledged the historic and biblical right of the Jewish people to reconstitute the Jewish National Home in the West Bank — recognized and legally authorized by the 1922 League of Nations Mandate for Palestine — and preserved under article 80 of the United Nations Charter.

A jointly-appointed US-Israel Mapping Committee — headed by Friedman — had failed — after 11 months — to produce a detailed subdivision of the West Bank embracing the conceptual two-state solution proposed by Trump — before Friedman’s retirement as Ambassador.

Closing the Embassy’s second Twitter page signals such a map will never be released under President Biden’s administration.

Biden has effectively declared Trump’s two-state solution dead and buried.


Author’s note: The cartoon—commissioned exclusively by the author —is by Yaakov Kirschen aka “Dry Bones”- one of Israel’s foremost political and social commentators – whose cartoons have graced the columns of Israeli and international media publications for decades. His cartoons can be viewed at Drybonesblog

Trump’s indecision is sinking his own two-state solution

 

President Trump’s failure to release a detailed plan showing the specific borders of a Palestinian Arab State incorporating Gaza and about 70% of Judea and Samaria (West Bank) - before he leaves office at midday on January 20, 2021—will sink the only two-state solution that has any possibility of being implemented in direct negotiations between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO).

President-elect Biden seems set to support the failed two-state solution propagated by the United Nations for the last 25 years — which is unacceptable to Israel.

When releasing his comprehensive plan “Peace to Prosperity — A Vision to Improve the Lives of the Palestinian and Israeli People” (“Peace Plan”) on January 28, 2020—Trump pointed out:

“For the first time in this conflict, President Trump has reached an understanding with Israel regarding a map setting forth borders for a two-state solution.

This Vision proposes a realistic two-state solution, offering a viable path to Palestinian statehood.

Israel has now agreed to terms for a future Palestinian State.”

Trump’s Peace Plan — unlike any other Presidential solution previously offered by his predecessors —was accompanied by the following conceptual plans showing his proposed two-state solution.

The final borders were to be determined in direct negotiations between Israel and the PLO.




At a joint press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu on January 28, 2020—Trump announced:

“We will form a joint committee with Israel to convert the conceptual map into a more detailed and calibrated rendering so that [Israeli] recognition can be immediately achieved.

We will also work to create a contiguous territory within the future Palestinian State for when the conditions for statehood are met, including the firm rejection of terrorism.”

Trump’s Peace Plan was rejected by PLO Chairman Mahmoud Abbas on February 5, 2020:

“They told me Trump wants to send me the deal of the century to read, I said I would not,” Abbas told the meeting of Arab League foreign ministers.

“Trump asked that I speak to him over the phone, so I said ‘no’, and that he wants to send me a letter, so I refused to receive it.”

On February 9, 2020 - US Ambassador to Israel—David Friedman—affirmed:

“The process [preparing a detailed map—ed] will not last very long, but we want to go through a process… We’re going to go through a mapping process to convert a map which is drawn of more than a million to one into something which really shows on the ground how the territory will be put together.

It’s not unduly difficult, but it’s also not simple, because there are a lot of judgment calls. We don’t want to do this piecemeal …

We want to do it once, holistically, in totality, and get it done right. We just want to get it done right. That’s not too much to ask. And that was the president’s message when he spoke about it the first time.”

On February 15, 2020 - the three US members of a joint US-Israel committee to join Israel’s three nominees in translating Trump’s conceptual plans into two defined territorial entities were announced (Mapping Committee).

Eleven months later the Mapping Committee’s map remains under tight wraps. No reasons have been given for the Committee’s failure to publish.

Failing to release the Committee’s detailed map before January 20 will see Trump’s two-state solution sink into political oblivion — leaving no defined borders for future Israel-PLO negotiations — should they ever be resumed.

President Trump’s opportunity to finally end the 100 years-old unresolved Jewish-Arab conflict will then have become just a footnote in history — joining the failed attempts of his Presidential predecessors.


Author’s note: The cartoon—commissioned exclusively by the author —is by Yaakov Kirschen aka “Dry Bones”- one of Israel’s foremost political and social commentators – whose cartoons have graced the columns of Israeli and international media publications for decades. His cartoons can be viewed at Drybonesblog

Trump pulls off another miracle in the Middle East

President Trump appears to have been instrumental in pulling off yet another miracle in the Middle East with the announcement that Saudi Arabia would be reopening its airspace and land and sea border with Qatar.

The announcement — which comes on the eve of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) summit on 5 January — is the catalyst that will see the resolution of a political dispute that led Saudi Arabia and its allies – Bahrain, United Arab Emirates and Egypt — to impose a diplomatic, trade and travel boycott on Qatar in June 2017.

Qatar was then accused of having ties with Iran that were deemed too close.

Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani will attend the GCC summit – having received a formal invitation from Saudi King Salman to the six-nation summit.

The Saudi News Agency has reported Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman stating: 

 “that the upcoming GCC summit shall be a summit to close the ranks and unify the stance and to enhance the march of the good and prosperity, adding that we will translate through the summit,”

White House senior adviser Jared Kushner had visited Saudi Arabia and Qatar last November in an attempt to secure such a reconciliation agreement.

One week earlier—Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was reported to have secretly met with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

Saudi Arabia denied the meeting took place — but Israel didn’t.

Mr. Netanyahu’s meeting with Mohammed bin Salman – reportedly in the seaside corner of northwest Saudi Arabia — coincided with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s visit. Yossi Cohen—the director of Israel’s spy agency Mossad — reportedly accompanied Netanyahu.

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan al-Saud had hinted a rapprochement with Qatar was very near when he told the MED 2020 Rome forum on 4 December 2020:

“We’ve made significant progress in the last few days, thanks to the continuing efforts of Kuwait but also thanks to strong support from President Trump and US administration towards bringing all parties closer”

The significance of such a looming reconciliation was summed up by al Khalej Today:

“an extraordinary Saudi movement has emerged in the direction of promoting the achievement of a reconciliation that has become within reach, as the Kingdom’s Foreign Minister, Faisal bin Farhan, has already mentioned. A reconciliation in which Riyadh is happy, as it believes, as well as its ally Washington, that the Gulf reunification will constitute, if Israel is annexed to it, a united front in the face of Iran, which will stand as an impregnable barrier to any step that contradicts the policy of “maximum pressure”.

GCC Secretary General Nayef Mubarak Al Hajraf has welcomed the reopening of airspace and land and sea borders between Qatar and Saudi Arabia:

“The step, which comes ahead of the 41st GCC summit in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, reflects the great interest and sincere efforts being made to ensure the success of the summit, which is held in light of extraordinary circumstances,”

 Kushner will reportedly be attending the signing ceremony to end the blockade of Qatar.

Anwar Gargash — UAE’s minister of state for foreign affairs — describing the upcoming summit as “historic” – stated:

“We stand before a historic summit in Al-Ula, through which we restore our Gulf cohesion and ensure that security, stability and prosperity is our top priority. We have more work ahead and we are moving in the right direction,”

Could these developments herald more Arab states soon joining Bahrain, United Arab Emirates, Sudan and Morocco in recognizing Israel?

President Trump keeps continuing to pull more rabbits out of the hat.