Daily Times

Today, the United States foreign policy, under the leadership of President Donald Trump, is in shambles. There seems to be a sort of madness in his decision-making process, to undo all the good work done by his predecessor Barrack Obama.

First, on January 23, only three days into his administration, he withdrew from the negotiation process over the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), on the specious grounds that the American labour would suffer immensely because the partnership was skewed against US interests. The Trans-Pacific Partnership was one of Obama’s signature foreign policy achievements. Next, he walked out of the Paris Climate Accord; an accord whose main architect was Barrack Obama, whose influence led 195 countries to sign the accord. The third blunder was not taking on China, which, in spite, of the International Tribunal’s award rejecting China’s historical claims over Scarborough Shoals and Sparty Islands and recognising Philippines claims over the Island, China refused to abide by the award. The Philippines which was banking on the US support had no option but to approach China to resolve the dispute. The waning influence of the US in Asia, West Asia and the Middle East is forcing more and more countries to become closer to either China or Russia.

Trump’s attempt to dismantle the Obama administration’s signature nuclear deal with Iran and his clueless approach to deal with North Korea are a few examples of a confused foreign policy. In fact, Trump will succeed in forcing Iran to go the North Korea way.

In a hard-hitting editorial on the US foreign policy of the Trump administration, the British daily, The Guardian wrote that “We stand at a perilous moment, not only in the Middle East but in Asia too, where Trump’s manifest unfitness for the highest office edges the world ever closer to conflict. In 11 months, he has left behind a trail of wreckage on the international front — from the Paris climate accord to the Iran nuclear deal to trade agreements — to which we must now add years of effort towards peace in the Middle East.”

The recent US decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel’s capital has virtually ruled out any hope of ending the Israel-Palestine conflict. In fact, his decision will force some of his allies like Egypt, Jordan and Saudi Arabia to rethink their support for the US. Moreover, Palestine will no longer trust the US to broker peace in the region.

Trump’s attempt to dismantle the Obama administration’s signature nuclear deal with Iran and his clueless approach on dealing with North Korea are two examples of a confused foreign policy

Ever since Mahmoud Abbas became the President of the State of Palestine, he has rejected violence and advocated negotiation with Israel through diplomacy. He was instrumental in preventing the advocates of Intifada uprising to force Israel to cede the lands occupied by them. Now, Trump’s decision will not only weaken Abbas, but will also encourage Hamas and other organisations for an armed struggle against Israel. We may see a wave of terrorist attacks on Israel as people will now lose faith to reclaim their lands through negotiations with Israel.

Moreover, Trump’s hasty decision, which goes against the grain of the United Nations Security Council Resolution 2334, adopted on 23 December 2016 over Israeli settlements in “Palestinian territories occupied since 1967, including East Jerusalem, would put an end to the decade long peace process between Israel and Palestine, though it had remained moribund for over two decades. Immediately, after Trump’s proclamation, 14 UN Security Council Members, including four permanent members have criticised Trump over his decision on Jerusalem. By not commenting on East Jerusalem, he practically demolished the two-nation solution. This will only help to harden Israel in its stand.

The people of Palestine feel that by recognising Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, Trump has legitimised Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestinian territories, including East Jerusalem. They also feel that the United States “no longer has any regard for international conventions or norms, and that might and power prevails over justice and the law.”

Jerusalem is of huge importance to both Israel and the Palestinians. It contains sites sacred to the three major monotheistic faiths — Judaism, Islam and Christianity. The famous Al Aqsa Mosque, the third holiest site in Islam is located in old city in East Jerusalem.

Even, Pope Francis criticised the US move. Trump’s decision has also been criticised by the UN Secretary-General and other European and Asian Countries. India, which has excellent relations with Israel, did not approve Trump’s decision on Jerusalem.

The only way forward is for Donald Trump to reverse his decision on Jerusalem, as there is a danger that many countries approaching the United Nations will condemn Trump’s decision. If Trump, keeping the sentiments of Arabs and others in view, decides to reverse his decision, this would be welcomed by Palestine and other Arab countries and would set the stage for resuming the dialogue between the two neighbours.

The only solution to end the conflict is the one proposed by the United Nations — A two-two state solution, an independent state of Palestine co-existing alongside a Jewish State of Israel. For this to succeed, Israel should hand over East Jerusalem, illegally in its occupation, to Palestine. Israel should also dismantle its illegal settlements in the West Bank and vacate from Gaza.

As Israel has invested in building military bases and has settled almost half a million people in West Bank, it may not readily agree to hand over West Bank to Palestine. If Israel refuses to agree on a two-state solution, Iran and other countries may encourage Hamas and other organisations to go for an armed struggle against Israel by funding and arming these outfits, a frightening prospect that must be avoided at all costs.

As the dispute does not offer any solution that is acceptable to both sides, the United Nations should set up a mechanism, where under its auspices all the Arab countries should join hands with Palestine, in negotiating with Israel. As Saudi Arabia and other Arab countries have come closer to Israel, part of their strategy is to counterbalance Iran. In effect they should put pressure on Israel to support the two-state solution to end the bloody conflict that has been raging for decades.

The author is an independent columnist and political commentator

Published in Daily Times, December 13^th 2017.