The US and Middle East under Trump 2.0 must look better than under Trump 1.0 - opinion

For now, the Saudi monarchy can claim victory after the summit meeting it hosted on November 11 for some 60 countries. The conference was designed to advance an action plan for the Saudi-proposed Global Alliance for the Implementation of the Two-State Solution.

Riyadh scored a dual victory. The Arab and Muslim world leaders who gathered in the Saudi capital endorsed the Saudi initiative and unanimously supported its quest to launch a worldwide diplomatic campaign to achieve a just and lasting peace in the Middle East.

Moreover, the Saudi monarchy sent a message, specifically to the incoming Trump administration, about what should be done to solve the Middle East crisis and put an end to wars in the region, namely in Gaza and Lebanon.

The Saudi leadership has been active lately, bolstering its long-maintained role as one of the region’s most powerful and influential countries. The kingdom has gained further power after resuming diplomatic ties with Iran, consequently mitigating prospective Iranian threats or fears.

The participating countries in the Saudi-hosted summit also reiterated their commitment to the March 2002 Arab Peace Initiative. They called for the creation of an independent State of Palestine alongside Israel on the lines of June 4, 1967, with East Jerusalem as its capital.

Some argue that the two-state solution no longer exists. Others even claim it’s dead, given the policy of the Israeli government under Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Going along with this thinking is detrimental to the whole region; it tells all countries, whether or not they share a border with Israel, that military arrogance and the use of violence, no matter which side starts it, are this region’s doomed fate.

Palestinians and Israelis have a joint duty to wipe such destructive thinking off their minds and agendas. They must seek ways to coexist rather than kill each other.

There were hopes that President-elect Donald Trump would be a different person, an upgraded version of Trump 2016. Some of his declarations in his election campaign sounded promising and suggested an improved Trump. Statements attributed to him created the impression that he had changed. He reportedly told his close aides during the election campaign that Israel is a rich country and should pay back the billions it received during the war in Gaza.

His presidential campaign promises to US Arab and Muslim voters who defected from the Democratic Party to vote for him quickly evaporated. He promised to make every effort to solve the Arab-Israeli conflict to their liking, i.e., supporting the creation of an independent Palestinian state. He injected them with a significant dose of optimism.

And yet, a few days later, he disappointed all those hopeful Arab and Muslim voters when he tapped several far-right Evangelical politicians to fill his cabinet secretary roles. His picks support Netanyahu and his government, whose survival depends on continuing the wars and rejecting any cease-fires in Gaza or Lebanon. Continuing the status quo may enable the current Israeli prime minister to secure a victory in upcoming elections.

The Israel-Hamas war, which has already entered its 13th month, has given a platform for all voices of extremism to express themselves while ignoring the ongoing grievances and pain in Palestinian and Israeli societies. But this sudden upsurge in extremism doesn’t mean that all of us living on both sides of the 1967 divide have to spend the rest of our lives as hostages in the hands of advocates of the zero-sum solution of everything or nothing.

Palestinians and Israelis are not poker cards. Our lives are sacred and must be preserved. Moreover, we have had enough of the hundred-century conflict and deserve a moment of peace to extend to future generations.

Therefore, the two-state solution is the best path to averting the never-ending agony of conflict in our Middle East. The Arab Peace Initiative and the UN resolutions pertinent to the question of Palestine are and will always remain the only road to regional peace and stability.

Suppose Trump had the luxury of missing his first opportunity to achieve peace during his previous term. In that case, our region doesn’t have the luxury of missing another chance on Trump’s second watch. Trump’s one main previous error was his belief that making peace between the UAE and Israel, for instance, and forging the so-called Abraham Accords would bring peace to the region when neither Israel nor the UAE were in a state of war and had never shot a single bullet at each other.

How peace can be achieved

Peace is made between enemies who fight each other, not between enemies or adversaries who have never engaged in any direct showdown.

Suppose President-elect Trump wants to expand the normalization process he started between Israel and some of the remote Arab countries. In that case, he should look in the other direction and start with the Palestinians and the countries that recently convened their summit in Saudi Arabia. They are potential partners whom Trump can rely on to expand the list of Arab and Muslim countries that want to normalize ties with Israel.

The only way to engage these players in such an effort is to incorporate the Arab Peace Initiative and its parameters in a new memorandum of understanding that the US administration will circulate. In so doing, Trump will earn their support for doing what he promised: end the Middle East conflict. Only then will Trump go down in history as the leader who not only advocated the ultimate deal but also turned it into reality; a reality of peace and coexistence between the two states of Israel and Palestine along the June 4, 1967, lines.

With all the hopes and expectations people had from the US, lots of frustration overshadowed both sides because of the US’s impotence in doing something tangible to stop the war in Gaza. President-elect Trump is known for being extremely unpredictable, a person full of surprises. This time, let’s only hope the surprises he has in mind will end this conflict. Enough is enough.