America and the effort to restart Middle East peace

White House adviser Jared Kushner has just concluded a visit to the Middle East on a mission to kick-start the peace process between Israel and Palestine.

However, the results of the visit were quite limited because the Trump administration has not yet presented a clear vision for Middle East peace, while Palestinians are increasingly frustrated with the deadlock of the peace process with Israel.

Advisor Kushner shakes hands with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (right) ahead of the discussion on August 24. (Photo: Anadolu Agency)

At a meeting in Ramallah, West Bank on the evening of August 24, Advisor Kushner brought President Donald Trump's message that the US administration remains committed and optimistic about the possibility of achieving a solution that brings prosperity and peace to all people in the region. Receiving the commitment from President Trump's administration, Palestinian President Abbas expressed his confidence in the US's mediating role.

“We welcome the visit of the American delegation led by adviser Jared Kushner, hoping that peace can be achieved between the Palestinians and Israelis,” Abbas said. “We also appreciate the efforts of President Trump, who from the beginning announced that he would help complete a historic peace agreement in the Middle East and he repeatedly reiterated this during his meetings with us in Washington, Riyadh and Bethlehem. We know that the current situation is difficult and complicated. However, nothing is impossible if we work together.”

Palestinians are still seeking a commitment from the Trump administration to support the establishment of a Palestinian state living peacefully alongside Israel, a position that US presidents over the past 20 years have always pledged.

However, up to this point, President Donald Trump has not had a clear stance on Israeli settlements built on Palestinian territory, or even whether or not he supports an independent Palestinian state. President Trump's ambiguous statements such as not necessarily relying on a two-state solution have disappointed Palestinians about the prospect of peace after peace talks between the two sides broke down in 2014.

The visit by Advisor Kushner, an investor and real estate developer with little experience in international diplomacy and political negotiations, led a delegation of US officials including special envoy Jason Greenblatt and Deputy National Security Adviser Dina Powell, in an attempt to breathe new life into the peace process, but the effort was made more difficult by the internal problems facing both the US President and the Israeli Prime Minister.

The US administration is preoccupied with a series of internal crises, the latest being the racial violence in Charlottesville, Virginia, while the Israeli prime minister faces a corruption investigation with the possibility of prosecution.

In that context, the spokesman for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Mr. Nabil Abu Rdainah, cautiously said that the visit of the US envoys only stopped at consulting with regional allies, creating opportunities for new arrangements as well as preventing the deterioration of the peace process.

Mahmoud Alloul, a top official in President Abbas' Fatah movement, commented that US envoys came to the Middle East empty-handed, because they had not presented a clear vision for peace.

Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki said that Palestinians want to seek clear answers from adviser Kushner on the issue of settlement and independence.

The impartiality of the US as a mediator will be questioned if these questions are not answered. Meanwhile, US officials have stated that the visit of US envoys to the region is only aimed at discussing the path to substantive peace talks between Israel and Palestine./.

According to VOV