The U.S. “remains committed to sharing its vision for peace with Israel, the Palestinians and other regional and international stakeholders at the appropriate time,” U.S. Ambassador David Friedman said on Monday.
Friedman's comments, in the form of a rare press release, comes amid much speculation about when the US will roll-out the long-delayed plan, with some saying that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is pressing the U.S. to delay rolling out the long-delayed plan -- expected to call for concessions both from Israel and the Palestinians -- until after new elections in Israel.
Friedman said that U.S. President Donald Trump met last week in the Oval Office with him, Trump's senior advisor Jared Kushner, Mideast negotiator Jason Greenblatt, Vice President Mike Pence, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and National Security Advisor John Bolton.
Trump's “vision for comprehensive peace between Israel and the Palestinians” was discussed, Friedman said, adding that “reports of our meeting have been wildly inaccurate.”
Friedman said that the timing, strategy and messaging of the plan will “be entirely our own.”
“We intend to release the President’s vision when the Administration concludes that we have maximized its potential for acceptance, execution and implementation. Moreover, Mr. Kushner, Mr. Greenblatt and I are of one mind in terms of how best to proceed,” he said. “Those anonymous ‘experts’ who purport to speak for the Administration on this issue are ill informed and mistaken.”
The release of the plan – the blueprint for Trump’s ultimate deal, or the “deal of the century” – has already been delayed a number of times this year. In September, Trump said that he would be releasing the plan in two to four months, but talk of new Israeli elections led many to speculate that this deadline will not be met.
This article has been adapted from its original source.
