For the Trump peace plan to work, Palestinians must give peace a chance

As Abba Eban said after the Geneva Peace Conference with Arab countries in 1973, “Palestinians never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity.”

The Arab League vote in Cairo on Saturday supporting the Palestinian Authority and expressing opposition to US President Donald Trump’s recently unveiled peace plan for the Middle East was harmful, not helpful.

In the same vein, PA President Mahmoud Abbas’s announcement that he has decided to sever all relations with the US and Israel, including security coordination, was ill-advised, and should be reconsidered carefully.

The plan, “Peace to Prosperity: A Vision to Improve the Lives of the Palestinian and Israeli People,” formally announced by Trump at a White House press conference on January 28, was immediately endorsed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as well as his primary contender in the March 2 elections, Blue and White Party chairman Benny Gantz.

The plan calls for the creation of a demilitarized Palestinian state in about 70% of the West Bank. Israel would retain Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria, keep the Jordan Valley under Israeli control and have the right to formally declare sovereignty over these areas.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo notably urged the PA to come up with a “counter offer” that could form the basis of future negotiations. “I know the Israelis would be prepared to sit down and negotiate on the basis of the vision that the president laid out,” he said.

In an interview with Channel 12 news, Pompeo made it clear that the Palestinians had a path to statehood under the plan: “It grants the Palestinians a state that’s conditional on some really simple things… like stopping terrorism [and] acknowledging Israel as the Jewish state. These are basic things for peace and prosperity in the region.”

As a show of goodwill, the Trump administration has insisted that Israel not approve any annexation of territory – including that of the Jordan Valley – until after a new Israeli government is formed. We urge the Palestinian Authority to wait until such a government takes office before making any rash decisions it might later regret.

As The Jerusalem Post correspondent Khaled Abu Toameh pointed out, Abbas has made similar threats in the past to cut all relations with the US and Israel, including security ties, but refrained from following through on these threats partly out of fear that Hamas would take over.

“Abbas knows that without the security coordination, he won’t be able to leave Ramallah,” one Palestinian political analyst was quoted as saying.

On the flip side, it makes much more sense for the Palestinians to reconsider the benefits that the Trump peace plan could yield.

The economic portion of the plan proposes a $50 billion investment fund for infrastructure and business projects in the Palestinian territories, which promise much-needed industry, jobs and prosperity. Several Arab states previously expressed their willingness to come aboard to help finance the fund, including Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, Oman, the United Arab Emirates and Morocco.

But as Abba Eban said after the Geneva Peace Conference with Arab countries in 1973, “Palestinians never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity.”

The Trump peace offer is a historic opportunity for the sides to break an impasse that has gone on for way too long, and to resume the path to peace. It is a most welcome starting point for an enduring peace treaty, such as the ones Israel has with Egypt and Jordan. The Trump administration should be thanked – and not spat at – by all parties involved.

We recognize the wisdom in the words of the former US Ambassador to the UN, Nikki Haley: “It takes two hands to clap.” In other words, the Palestinians must be brought on board for any peace process to have a chance.

But to borrow John Lennon’s words, now is the time to “give peace a chance” – before it’s too late. In this spirit, we urge the Palestinians and the Arab League to reconsider their refusal, hold off on their threats to sever ties and return to the negotiating table after next month’s Israeli elections.