Donald Trump on the Israelis and Palestinians

Among Donald Trump’s foreign policy shockers, this week, was his statement that he doesn’t necessarily support a two-state solution to the Israeli/Palestinian problem.  Instead, he said he supports whatever the two sides agree to:

“I can live with either one.  I thought for a while the two-state looked like it may be the easier of the two but honestly, if Bibi [i.e., Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu] and if the Palestinians -- if Israel and the Palestinians are happy, I'm happy with the one they like the best.”

This was a shock to the foreign policy establishment.  Europe, the United States.  Everybody has supported a two-state solution.  President Trump’s statement was seen as allowing the Israelis to do whatever they want.

Except I don’t see it that way.  It seems to me that President Trump has actually done the opposite.  Whether he intended to or not, instead of letting the Israelis be irresponsible, I think he is forcing them to be responsible.  No longer can the Israelis, or Israeli politicians, blame the United States for their problems or their inability to reach an agreement with the Palestinians.  They can’t say that the U.S. is forcing this solution or that solution.  It’s up to them to solve the problem themselves.

I think the Palestinians should be told the same thing.  They should be told that nobody is going to force the Israelis to give them “x” or “y”.  Nobody is going to solve their problem with Israel for them.  The Palestinians have to do it themselves.  They have to come up with their own solution.

If everybody told both sides:  Solve your problem yourselves; whatever the two of you agree to is fine with us.  And then left them alone.  Maybe even ignored them.  We might be surprised what the two sides could come up with if they didn’t have somebody else to blame for their inability to reach an agreement.