Trump on the Middle East

[Wales-Bales]

I don't think Trump is going to do anything good for the Middle East even by accident.

He doesn't know what he's talking about. He doesn't 'do detail' or understand the history and objectives of the main protagonists. His 'policy tweets' reflect the last conversation he had and flip-flop all over the place. He has surrounded himself with a bizarre mix of far right one-state Zionists who are determined to maintain an expansionist, settler, Jewish state protected by the USA (as opposed to a state where Jewish people can live in freedom and safety) and of far right anti semitic white supremacists.

In the meantime the best realistic compromise of a two-state solution that has emerged painfully over 20+ years through blood, sweat and tears, is about to be abandoned. Netanyahu has tried to kill it. Trump may well succeed.

Trump never said he doesn't support a 2-state solution. He said he will back whatever agreement Israel AND Palestine think is the best for them.

[jon1959]

Trump never said he doesn't support a 2-state solution. He said he will back whatever agreement Israel AND Palestine think is the best for them.

Who knows what he's said or what he means.

He backed off decades long US support for a 2 state solution whilst standing in a press conference next to Netanyahu - who has been actively trying to sabotage that model for years - and the even more far right members of his coalition are pulling him further and faster in that direction with (elements of) Trump administration encouragement. He said something and nothing as usual, but it seems to me the subtext was 'whatever Benjamin and his government want'!

http://edition.cnn.com/2017/02/16/po...ans-two-state/

Then less than a day later the US ambassador to the UN contradicted him:

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/wo...-a7584386.html

The Trump speech has been universally interpreted as a policy U turn because that is just what it is. However a day later he could spin around again and end up where he started. It is incompetent and chaotic and very dangerous.