Trump threatens to stop aid to Palestinians unless they make peace with Israel

US President Donald Trump on Thursday threatened to withhold aid to Palestine if they don't pursue peace with Israel, saying they had snubbed the United States by not meeting Vice President Mike Pence during a recent visit.

Trump made the comment when speaking after a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland and according to him, he aimed for peace in the Middle East.

Recall that Palestinians shunned Pence’s visit to the region this month after Trump recognised Jerusalem whose status is at the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as Israel’s capital.

Trump’s decision in December drew universal condemnation from Arab leaders and criticism around the world. It also broke with decades of US policy that the city’s status must be decided in negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians.

When they disrespected us a week ago by not allowing our great vice president to see them, and we give them hundreds of millions of dollars in aid and support, tremendous numbers, numbers that nobody understands – that money is on the table and that money is not going to them unless they sit down and negotiate peace, Trump said.

Washington had already said it would withhold about half the initial aid it planned to give a UN agency that serves the Palestinians.

Following Trump's decision, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas the Jerusalem declaration a “slap in the face” and rejected Washington as an honest broker in any future talks with Israel. 

Israel’s government regards Jerusalem as the eternal and indivisible capital of the country, although that is not recognised internationally while Palestinians see East Jerusalem as the capital of a future Palestinian state.

Because I can tell you that Israel does want to make peace and they’re going to have to want to make peace too or we’re going to have nothing to do with them any longer, Trump said urging Palestinians to come to the negotiating table.

According to him, his administration had a peace proposal in the works that was a “great proposal for Palestinians” which covers “a lot of the things that were over the years discussed or agreed on”, without providing specifics.

Trump said that his declaration of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital took it off the negotiating table “and Israel will pay for that”, adding “they’ll do something that will be a very good thing” without elaborating.

Sourced from Reuters