The US President Donald Trump met with Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas at the White House this week. This in itself is a very positive thing. Why? Because it has often been the claim that the US are wildly pro-Israel and that they ignore the issues of the Palestinian people. As a result, the fact that Trump met with Abbas is a Good starting point.
What was said and done?
Further on, it seems clear that Trump wants to go where no other President has gone an actually secure a long lasting peace deal between both the Israel's and the Palestinians.
He stated, as reported on the Aljazeera website, that "Let's see if we can prove them wrong" and that "we will get it done". In addition to this, it is clear that the Palestinians believe in Trump. This was illustrated by the statement made by Abbas that they had hope in him. It was further said by Trump that direct negotiations are key, stating that, "the Palestinians and Israelis must work together to reach an agreement". However, despite his rhetoric, he did still face criticism. Marwan Bishara from Aljazeera said that "Trump has basically said nothing of importance about the issue, other than promising that he wants to" do it.
Will he succeed?
The big question to ask is, will Trump go one step further and achieve peace? There is no reason why he cannot. He does have to manage the situation carefully and if direct negotiations do take place whilst he is a moderator, he may just do it. We shall see.