2 states not only option to ME peace, says Trump
washington — US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday he was open to a one state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict if it is acceptable to both sides.
“I’m looking at two state and one state, and I like the one that both parties like. I’m very happy with the one that both parties like. I can live with either one,” Trump said at a press conference welcoming Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the White House.
“I thought for a while the twostate looked like it may be the easier of the two, but honestly, if Bibi and if the Palestinians — if Israel and the Palestinians are happy, I’m happy with the one they like the best,” he said.
Trump also asked Netanyahu to “hold back” on settlements in land the Palestinians claim for their future state for a bit.
US president promised Netanyahu that Iran would never be permitted to build a nuclear weapon. “With this visit the United States, again, reaffirms our unbreakable bond with our cherished ally, Israel,” Trump said.
“The security challenges faced by Israel are enormous, including the threat of Iran’s nuclear ambitions, which I’ve talked a lot about,” he said. “One of the worst deals I’ve ever seen is the Iran deal.”
washington — The White House signalled a sharp break with decades of support for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict on Tuesday, on the eve of Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to the White House.
A senior White House official said the United States would no longer seek to dictate the terms of any eventual peace settlement, but would support what the two sides agree to together.
“A two-state solution that doesn’t bring peace is not a goal that anybody wants to achieve,” the official said on condition of anonymity.
“Peace is the goal, whether that comes in the form of a two-state solution if that’s what the parties want, or something else if that’s what the parties want.”
“That’s going to be up to them, we are not going to dictate what the terms of peace are going to be,” said the official.
President Trump was set to host Netanyahu at the White House on Wednesday, and was expected to express his desire to help broker a solution to the conflict.
But major questions remain about how Trump will achieve that goal. For the better part of half a century, successive US governments have backed a two-state solution. It was the basis of peace talks at Oslo and Camp David.
But since coming to office in late January, Trump has sought to show that the United States is an unwavering ally of Israel and tried to draw a contrast with the policies of President Barack Obama.
Netanyahu won re-election in 2015 by insisting he would not accept the creation of a Palestinian state, a vow that considerably soured relations with the Obama White House.
Obama often warned that Israeli settlement construction could make a two-state solution impossible, and that a one state solution would put the future of the Jewish state in question.
Trump has shied away from criticising Netanyahu’s settlement policies as an impediment to peace.