US President Donald Trump said during a press conference that the Palestinian leadership will be interested in becoming a part of the new peace deal if other countries conclude agreements with Israel
WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 14th August, 2020) US President Donald Trump said during a press conference that the Palestinian leadership will be interested in becoming a part of the new peace deal if other countries conclude agreements with Israel.
"I think the Palestinians... very much want to be a part of what we are doing," Trump said on Thursday. "I see peace between Israel and the Palestinians. I think as these very big, powerful, wealthy countries come in, I think the Palestinians will follow quite naturally."
Earlier on Thursday, Israel and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) agreed to normalize relations, and an agreement to establish embassies is expected to follow in the coming weeks. In exchange, Israel said it would halt its plans to formally annex parts of the West Bank.
Trump said Israel's agreement to suspend its annexation plans "right now is off the table."
Both ruling Palestinian movements, Fatah and Hamas, have already denounced the UAE-Israel agreement. The UAE's move appears to be an erosion of the common Arab position, which, as manifested in the regional peace initiative of 2002, offered normalization as a reward for Israel's withdrawal from the occupied territories.
