Jared's (and Donald's) Middle East Peace Plan

[Snowboarder_Bo]

The AP says things are afoot:

U.S. officials say the Trump administration is staffing up a Middle East policy team at the White House in anticipation of unveiling its long awaited but largely mysterious Israeli-Palestinian peace plan.

The National Security Council last week began approaching other agencies seeking volunteers to join the team, which will work for President Donald Trump’s Mideast peace pointmen Jared Kushner and Jason Greenblatt, according to the officials. The team, which is being set up to organize the peace plan’s public presentation and any negotiations that may ensue, will comprise three units: one concentrating on its political and security details, one on its significant economic focus and one on strategic communications, the officials said.

The creation of a White House team is the first evidence in months that a plan is advancing. Although Trump officials have long promised the most comprehensive package ever put forward toward resolving the conflict, the emerging plan has not been described with even a small amount of detail by Kushner, Greenblatt or any other official.

Timing on the release of the plan remains undecided. The State Department, Pentagon, intelligence agencies and Congress have been asked to detail personnel to the team for six months to a year, according to the officials, who were not authorized to publicly discuss the matter and spoke on condition of anonymity.

The agencies declined to comment but an NSC official said that Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law and senior adviser, and Greenblatt, Trump’s special envoy for international negotiations, “are expanding their team and the resources available as they finalize the details and rollout strategy of the peace initiative.”

White House officials say the plan will focus on pragmatic details, rather than top-line concepts, that will be able to easier win public support.

Anyone got any inkling of what that means, exactly? Like: what do we think we’ll see when they finally show us their plan?

And what is the likelihood of any of it being adopted by everyone involved?

I’ll be surprised if this new plan offers any real, concrete details and I’ll be even more surprised if any of them get adopted and/or enacted. The first doubt is because everything this administration does is half-assed, utterly unfounded and/or ignorant of history and usually completely ignorant regarding the law. The second is because of how entrenched things are in the Middle East. But hey, I’m always willing to be pleasantly surprised; I just don’t think it’s at all likely so I say, in my best Principal Skinner voice: “Prove me wrong, kids. Prove. Me. Wrong.”

What do y’all think?

[Little_Nemo]

I’m pretty much in agreement. I’d love to see some progress being made towards peace in the Middle East and I genuinely hope this proposal succeeds in that. But it’s a huge problem and this administration has failed in addressing far easier issues. Realistically, I’ll be happy if whatever plan this administration presents doesn’t make things worse.

[Twoflower]

I have zero expectation that any Trump-generated proposal will be acceptable to Palestinians or the Arab countries.

[dalej42]

I have zero expectations as well. Trump has almost no one with foreign policy experience and those that do, like Bolton, are mad.

Rex Tillerson screwed the State Department by not hiring. You need those Mid East policy wonks focusing on the issue 40 hours a week.

[asahi]

@Twoflower

I have zero expectation that any Trump-generated proposal will be acceptable to Palestinians or the Arab countries.

This administration has made it clear: the Palestinians are going to be completely rubbed out. There is no 2-state solution; there is a final solution, and it’s going to be Palestinians who get put on trains out of their home country.

You wanna know why Alan Dershowitz and Joe Lieberman love Trump so much? Think about it.

[Sage_Rat]

As of yet, Kushner has simply been following the guidance of Netanyahu.

I would presume that the plan will be whatever Netanyahu has been proposing before now, unless he’s finally decided to strike his own path.

Here’s one speech Netty gave on the topic:

Full text of Netanyahu's foreign policy speech at Bar Ilan

[Robot_Arm]

I think Kushner’s peace plan will be to hire KushCo Peace Partners Inc. for consulting services, along with Xi Border Solutions, and they’ll have that whole Mideast thing settled by 2021, 2025 at the latest.

[Locrian]

This administrations plans have two criteria: 1) Make rich richer and 2) Infuriate any friends of the United States (Sates).

Brining peace?? Real politicians have been unable to do so since before I was born. They’ll probably praise Assad inSuria as the newest friend of the fat Orange.

[foolsguinea]

Isn’t this likely a lot of nothing? They say they’re doing something to get ignorant domestic voters to think they’re doing something?

[Skywatcher]

I’d expect a Trump* to advocate the “cure the disease by killing the patient” approach. It would certainly be very peaceful after the bombs stopped dropping!

*I know, in-law. Close enough.

[Little_Nemo]

@Sage_Rat

As of yet, Kushner has simply been following the guidance of Netanyahu.

I would presume that the plan will be whatever Netanyahu has been proposing before now, unless he’s finally decided to strike his own path.

This American plan won’t be pure Netanyahu. I’m sure Putin will have some input.

[Profound_Gibberish]

Welcome to The Broken Triangle

Israel needs an enemy to cover their corruption. The Palestinians fill that role.

Arab Countries need a pathos-laden victim to cover their corruption (and provide a ready source near-slave workers). The Palestinians fill that role.

Palestinian “Leadership” can grift the international community far more effectively with a population in crisis rather than a population that is just getting by. The Palestinians fill that role.

If any of these three groups treated the Palestinian people as anything more than cannon-fodder for their cause this issue would be long resolved.

[sciurophobic]

@Profound_Gibberish

Welcome to The Broken Triangle

Israel needs an enemy to cover their corruption.

That doesn’t appear to be working very well.

List of Israeli public officials convicted of crimes or misdemeanors

[Buck_Godot]

@Snowboarder_Bo

The AP says things are afoot:Anyone got any inkling of what that means, exactly? Like: what do we think we’ll see when they finally show us their plan?

Who knows? Its pretty clear that they don’t even know. All we’ve got so far is that some 17 months into Trumps presidency, the whitehouse feels the need to look busy and so is starting to put together a committee to study the mid-East peace problem. The conclusion would probably be, “Who knew that peace in the middle East could be so complicated.” Followed by something cribbed from their predecessors but claimed by them to be revolutionary. Even if they do eventually come up with a road map and present it to the world, there is a very high likelihood that Trump will tweet something that totally contradicts the it. Leaving everyone confused as to what the whitehouse’s actual position is.

Probability that their plan actually leads to Mid East Peace 10^-36 plus or minus 10^-35

[Alessan]

Those of you who think that Netanyahu will be in favor of some sort of drastic action against the Palestinians doesn’t know Bibi. If there’s something we’ve leaned in his 11 years as PM is that the man HATES drastic action, and will do anything to maintain the status quo. He won’t fight the Palestinians for the same readon he won’t make peace with them - because both involve risk, and risk might mean he won’t get reelected. Those who portray Netanyahu as some sort of a fanatic couldn’t be further than the truth.

So if Kushner does what Bibi wants, it’ll be to propose some bloodless plan that the Pals will reject, thus making Bibi look good. The worst case scenario, for him, is for Trump to rock the boat by actually doing anything, even something that ostensibly helps Israel.

[Sage_Rat]

@Alessan

Those of you who think that Netanyahu will be in favor of some sort of drastic action against the Palestinians doesn’t know Bibi. If there’s something we’ve leaned in his 11 years as PM is that the man HATES drastic action, and will do anything to maintain the status quo. He won’t fight the Palestinians for the same readon he won’t make peace with them - because both involve risk, and risk might mean he won’t get reelected. Those who portray Netanyahu as some sort of a fanatic couldn’t be further than the truth.

So if Kushner does what Bibi wants, it’ll be to propose some bloodless plan that the Pals will reject, thus making Bibi look good. The worst case scenario, for him, is for Trump to rock the boat by actually doing anything, even something that ostensibly helps Israel.

Maybe. The overall goal seems to be to slowly squeeze Iran, but that’s pretty independent of the peace plan.

[DWMarch]

@Twoflower

I have zero expectation that any Trump-generated proposal will be acceptable to Palestinians or the Arab countries.

I am pretty sure the Palestinians have already said they were not open to any peace agreements involving the US based on the boneheaded embassy move.

[Horatius]

@DWMarch

I am pretty sure the Palestinians have already said they were not open to any peace agreements involving the US based on the boneheaded embassy move.

Yeah, this. When step #1 in their plan was “Piss off everybody in the Middle East who isn’t Israel”, the hopes for an actual solution are pretty forlorn.

[Chronos]

I have full faith that Trump and his team will be able to come up with some plan that, in addition to pissing off the Palestinians, will also manage to piss off Israel.

[Horatius]

@Chronos

I have full faith that Trump and his team will be able to come up with some plan that, in addition to pissing off the Palestinians, will also manage to piss off Israel.

I did say it was step #1; that implies there’s more steps to follow