Yedioth Ahronoth: Israel fears the “Century Deal” to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of two states
Israel has fears that US President Donald Trump’s plan, known as the “Century Deal”, could include the declaration of Jerusalem as the capital of two states, Palestine and Israel, as Yedioth Ahronoth reported.
The move could be an attempt to persuade Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to return to the negotiating table, the Israeli news paper said.
“Trump wants to make a deal that is seriously serious”, the newspaper quoted an unnamed senior Israeli official as saying.
“Trump sees the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as relatively easy.
The Israeli official believes that if Republican representation falls after the US midterm elections, Trump may strengthen his efforts to resolve the Palestinian-Israeli conflict so that he will have a major foreign policy achievement.
In the opinion of the Israeli official that the annexation of Jerusalem in the “Century Deal” may lead to placing Benjamin Netanyahu in a political dilemma, especially if he seeks to go to early parliamentary elections.
He expected Netanyahu to inform the US administration that US recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of two states would provoke strong opposition on the right and involve him with his coalition partners.
Netanyahu is likely to ask Trump administration to at least postpone the disclosure of the “Century Deal” until after the Knesset elections “parliament”.
Trump’s management is expected to announce a “Century Deal” before the end of this year, or early next year.
Yedioth Ahronoth quoted Israeli officials as saying that the Trump administration was working on a plan for peace based on three principles: “Those who come to the negotiating table should give up, there will be no unilateral concessions, and those who leave the negotiating table will pay the price.
Anyone who says “No” to the plan that will be presented will risk that the next plan is less acceptable to him.
The Israeli official described Trump’s approach as a trade approach based on “take the deal I am making now, because the next one will be worse”.
On the other hand, Yediot Aharonot attributed the Israeli officials to their assessment that in Washington a number of influential American officials will try to ensure that the Palestinians are not given a promise to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of two states, led by US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman.
As well as the great influence Netanyahu enjoys in the White House, and this may help him prevent the Trump Declaration Jerusalem as the capital of a Palestinian state in addition to Israel.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has refused to deal with the Trump administration since its decision, on December 6, 2017, to consider Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and then transfer the US Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem on May 14.
Abbas has repeatedly declared his rejection of the US “Century Deal”, which says it drops Jerusalem and refugees, keeps Israeli settlements, and gives Israel security hegemony.
Israel refuses to halt settlements and accept pre-June 1967 borders as the basis for a two-state solution, which has stalled peace negotiations since April 2014.
