[ad_1]
President Donald Trump speaks at a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday, September 26, 2018, at the United Kingdom headquarters. (Evan Vucci / Associated Press)
UNITED NATIONS – For the first time since taking office, President Donald Trump has adopted a two-state solution as the best way to resolve the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians in a meeting on Wednesday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Trump told reporters that he thought two states – Israel and the other for the Palestinians – "worked better". It had previously been vague on the subject, suggesting support for the parties' proposals, possibly including a single-state resolution. , who could see the Palestinian territories become part of Israel.
"I like (a) the two-state solution," Trump said while posing for photos with Netanyahu. "It seems to me that it works best. That's my feeling. Now you can have a different feeling. I do not think so. But I think the two-state solution works best.
Later, Trump told a news conference that achieving a two-state solution was "more difficult because it was a real estate transaction" but ultimately "it works better because people are govern. "
He added that he would always support Israel and the Palestinians if they opted for a one state solution, even though he thought it was less likely. "In the end, if Israelis and Palestinians want a single state, that suits me. If they want two states, that's fine with me. I am happy if they are happy. "
In his earlier comments, Trump said his Mideast peace plan, much anticipated but not yet published, could be submitted in the next two or four months, but was not precise as to timing.
Trump has been severely criticized by the Palestinians for a series of movements that they say show a clear bias against Israel, beginning with its recognition last year of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. Palestinians also claim the holy city as the capital of a prospective state. Earlier this year, Trump confirmed the recognition of the US Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, a move that has been widely disputed by Palestinians and others in the Arab world.
His administration also cut aid to Palestinians by hundreds of millions of dollars and ended US aid to the US agency that helps Palestinian refugees.
Palestinians reacted cautiously to Trump's remarks, noting that a two-state solution had long been the goal of peace efforts, including a broader Arab-Israeli plan that would allow Arab states to recognize Israel if Palestinians had an independent state.
Nabil Abu Rudeineh, spokesman for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, said the Palestinians remained committed to their demand for a border-based state before the 1967 Middle East war and East Jerusalem as its capital.
"Peace requires a two-state solution, where the state of Palestine is based on the 67 borders with East Jerusalem as the capital," he said. "This is the Arab and international attitude, and all final status issues must be resolved in accordance with international resolutions and the Arab peace initiative."
Trump and his national security team defended their position, saying decades of attempts to forge Israeli-Palestinian peace had failed.
He said Wednesday that the relocation of the embassy would actually help peace efforts by recognizing the reality that Israel identifies Jerusalem as its capital. But he added that Israel should make concessions to the Palestinians in any negotiations.
"Israel got the first chip and it's a big one," said Trump. "By removing the table, the embassy moved to Jerusalem, it was always the main ingredient to know why the transactions could not be done. Now, it's coming out of the table. Now, it will also mean that Israel will have to do something good for the other side. "
Netanyahu thanked Trump for his support and decision to withdraw from the Iranian nuclear deal and said that US-Israeli relations have never been better than under his administration. On Tuesday, Trump denounced Iran in its annual speech to the US General Assembly, accusing its leaders of corruption and the spread of chaos in the Middle East and beyond. He also vowed to continue imposing sanctions on Iran.
"Thank you for your strong words yesterday in the General Assembly against the corrupt terrorist regime in Iran," said Netanyahu. "They support your strong words and strong actions."
Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, disseminated, rewritten or redistributed.
[ad_2]Source link
