Kushner signals US is ready to sideline Abbas in Middle East talks
JARED KUSHNER, Donald Trump’s senior adviser and son-in-law, has announced that Washington will press on with a Middle East peace plan with or without Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president.
Mr Kushner told the Palestinian newspaper Al Quds in an interview published yesterday that the US blueprint was likely to be disclosed soon.
However, his comments underlined divisions between Washington and Palestinian leaders that have widened since Mr Trump recognised Jerusalem as Israel’s capital in December.
Mr Kushner, who is married to the president’s daughter Ivanka, is meeting other leaders in the region, but not Mr Abbas. He said he doubted whether the Palestinian president was willing or able to seal a deal.
“If President Abbas is willing to come back to the table, we are ready to engage; if he is not, we will likely air the plan publicly,” Mr Kushner said.
“However, I do question how much President Abbas has the ability to, or is willing to, lean into finishing a deal. He has his talking points which have not changed in the last 25 years.”
Mr Kushner appealed directly to the Palestinian people and portrayed Mr Abbas, 82, as entrenched in the past.
“Don’t let your leadership reject a plan they haven’t even seen,” he added.
Saeb Erekat, the Palestinians’ chief negotiator, said: “This [US] administration is really trying to destroy the Palestinian moderate camp. They want to throw us into chaos and anarchy.”
♦ The Israeli air force yesterday fired a missile at a drone that was approaching its border from Syria. “The vehicle retreated from the border,” the army said in a statement, noting the drone had not crossed into Israeli territory.