Trump says he will likely unveil the long-awaited plan before Netanyahu, Gantz visit the White House next week.
US President Donald Trump said on Thursday he will likely release his long-awaited peace plan for the Middle East before Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visits Washington, DC, next week.
Speaking to reporters on Air Force One en route to Miami for a political event, Trump said Palestinians might react negatively to his plan at first, but that it would benefit them.
“It’s a great plan,” said Trump, who will meet with Netanyahu at the White House on Tuesday. “It’s a plan that really would work.” He is also expected to meet Netanyahu’s election rival, Benny Gantz.
Trump said his administration has talked briefly to the Palestinians, who have rejected the administration’s peace plan before it even comes out.
“We’ve spoken to them briefly. But we will speak to them in a period of time,” Trump said.
Nabil Abu Rudeineh, a spokesman for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, said earlier on Thursday that Palestinians “warn Israel and the US administration not to cross any red lines”.
Trump had earlier appeared to dispel rumours that the plan would be released next week, tweeting that “details and timing of our closely-held peace plan are purely speculative”.
But onboard Air Force One, he confirmed that the plan would be released before Netanyahu’s visit.
The launch of Trump’s plan to end the decades-long conflict between Israel and the Palestinians has been delayed numerous times since it was first mooted more than two years ago. Prospects for a breakthrough appear dim and details of the plan have been kept under wraps.
