Mideast plan gets criticism at conference

MANAMA, Bahrain — The Trump administration’s $50 billion economic support plan for the Palestinians cannot succeed without addressing the political elements of a Middle East deal, international financial chiefs and global investors said Wednesday in comments that pushed back on the U.S. insistence that the two must be separated.

Panelists at the two-day conference in Bahrain welcomed the proposal’s investment and development goals but warned it would fall short without good governance, rule of law and realistic prospects for lasting peace through a political vision, which they noted is missing from the initiative.

Their views were aired as the Palestinians repeated their rejection of the Peace to Prosperity plan because it ignores their political demands, including an end to the Israeli occupation and the creation of an independent state.

Even the conference’s lone Palestinian speaker — a West Bank businessman who is viewed with suspicion by many compatriots — talked about the need for a Palestinian state.

Christine Lagarde, the managing director of the International Monetary Fund, suggested that peace is the missing part of the plan, which was put together by President Donald Trump’s son-in-law and senior adviser, Jared Kushner.

Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, who had a hand in earlier peacemaking efforts and has been supportive of Kushner’s plan, also spoke of the need for the economic proposal to have a political component.

Neither Israel nor the Palestinians are represented by official delegations at the conference in Bahrain, and many Arab nations that are attending the gathering have sent lower-level officials in a sign of their skepticism of the plan.