Trump’s embrace of harsh Middle Eastern realities over fantasies and political correctness increases the chance of genuine peace between Israel and its Muslim Arab neighbors.
By: Daniel Krygier, United with Israel
It was recently reported that the Trump Administration is expected to reject the Arab “right of return.”
For decades, in its quest to destroy Israel, the PLO has demanded that the Jewish state be flooded with millions of foreign-born Arabs that are defined uniquely by UNWRA as “refugees.”
The US State Department also announced that it is cutting 200 million USD in aid to the PA. Unsurprisingly, Ramallah has already condemned the move.
President Donald Trump’s Middle East policies have so far deviated dramatically from his predecessors’ course of action. While being widely unpopular in the Middle East and in many parts of Europe, his position on key issues like Jerusalem, Iran, Syria and UNWRA remain deeply rooted in reality.
Since taking office, Trump’s foreign policy has been widely condemned within international diplomatic circles. This is particularly true when it comes to issues related to Israel and the wider Middle East.
Despite its relatively limited scope, the Arab-Israeli conflict has loomed large in international foreign policy. For decades, the Arab-Israeli conflict has been seen through the lens of perceived Arab victimhood and pressure on Israel to continue making unilateral concessions. However, 25 years after the signed Oslo Accord between the PLO and Israel, the conflict appears more intractable than ever. Instead of bringing peace closer, unilateral Israeli concessions have only radicalized the Muslim Arab side and undermined any realistic prospects for peace.
Trump’s critics have correctly noted that the American president lacks the international diplomatic experience that many of his predecessors had. However, as an unconventional outsider, he has managed to tackle the Arab-Israeli conflict and other international issues with a fresh and different perspective.
Most of the world still does not recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. However, most serious observers are fully aware that the Jewish state will never give up its claims to its ancestral and contemporary capital. Even the harshest critics of Israel know that Israel will never allow millions of foreign Arabs to wipe out the Jewish state.
Instead of continuing to feed unrealistic Arab fantasies of destroying Israel, Trump has taken the issues of Jerusalem and “refugees” off the table. Since UNWRA’s mission is to perpetuate the Arab-Israel conflict, cutting aid to UNWRA actually benefits the cause of peace.
The same liberals who condemn Trump’s Middle East policies have been portraying Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for years as an “enemy of peace.” Yet the main reason that the Arab-Israeli conflict remains unresolved is that Trump’s predecessors based their Middle East policies on unrealistic Arab demands and fantasies.
Trump’s Middle East policies will never win any international popularity contests. However, his embrace of harsh Middle Eastern realities over fantasies and political correctness increases the chance of genuine peace between Israel and its Muslim Arab neighbors.
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