For the past over three decades, peace talks between Israel and Palestine have always collapsed. The US has always been in the forefront trying to bring long lasting peace in the region. Trump has at many instances portrayed confidence that peace talks will bear fruits during his time in office as the president. However, during the past one year, United States has deviated from its role as the mediator and there is little progress being made towards peace.
Jared Kushner was tasked by Trump to lead a group to oversee the peace talks. The group is considered by many as inexperienced and most of them are too close to Israel. Since Trump took office, the situation in the area has changed. At first, the president had been given the benefit of the doubt. This changed when he recognized Jerusalem (Holy City) as the capital city of Israel. He declared the Israeli US embassy will be moved from Tel a Viv to Jerusalem, that pulled out Palestinians from the peace talks. According to the international consensus which had existed for decades, the status of the City was to be determined through negotiations.
According to Michael Dune, an international peace researcher, Officials in the US government believe that Palestine can be convinced that they have lost and forced to agree with whatever arrangements made.
Trump unveiled a peace plan. However, the Palestinians have declined the US as the mediator for the countries. Aaron Miller, who has been a mediator in the middle East during the Republicans and Democrats administrations says that the US has not always been an honest broker. This is due to the relationship between the country and Israel. Miller condemns the Trump administration for being so much supportive towards Israel and hostile towards Palestine’s in the negotiations.
Krushner’s team has not been able to make steps towards the achievement of peace. The team has not yet unveiled the secret Trumps peace plan for the middle east. United States insist that the plan has not yet been abandoned and America is still mediating for peace. The major cause of the fails in peace talks is United States being biased. The Palestinians at the moment do not want to do anything with America.
The non-Muslim countries recognize the legitimacy of Israel and maintain relations with it. However, most of them criticize the treatment of the Palestinians and the current occupation of the West Bank settlement. The settlement occupation by the military is considered unlawful and in violation of the Geneva Convention. A successful peace negotiation would have to address the four key issues: west banks settlements, Palestinian refugees, Israel security and Jerusalem.
Hurdles in the peace talsk
The peace talks have been faced by the following hurdles: Israel continued expansion of the West Bank settlement, political divisions in Palestine and the lack of a specific point to kick off the negotiations. The Palestinians view the settlements as a campaign to erase the Palestinian state. Due to the political divisions of Palestinians between Fatah and Hamas, it is impossible to negotiate jointly. In addition, Israel has shown no intentions to negotiate with Hamas. To be successful in the talks, the Unite States should get the two sides to be more committed to peace.
Trump promised to reach a ‘deal of the century’ when it comes to the conflict in the Middle East, but his plan has derailed since the decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital city. Ever since the move, the Palestinians have refused to meet president Trump for peace talks. Abbas boycotted the meeting between him and Kushner after signals emerged that the peace plan seeks to deal with Bank and Gaza separately. The peace plan has been put on hold due to the rising tensions.
Previous US peace plans included proposals and guidelines dealing with potential land swaps, security and other issues. Jerusalem and other Palestinian demand have always been avoided. Trump has said that his decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital puts the matter off the table. Indications show that Abu Dis may be offered to Palestine instead of East Jerusalem. US envoy in the UN Security Council meeting claimed that they are still the biggest supporters of Palestinians financially. They have however frozen millions of funds to the region due to Abbas refusal to negotiate.
Peace in the Middle East is crucial and the United States under Trump administration is playing an important role in trying to achieve this. The two countries have taken tough stands on different matters, which makes the peace talks hard. US is still considered the greatest hope for peace in the area.
Image Credit: Flickr/State of Israel