The Biden administration today presented its policies on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and underlined its intention to renew ties with the Palestinian Authority.
Why does it matter: The Trump administration has dramatically changed US policy on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. President Biden’s policies, first unveiled today, will move the United States back to more traditional positions held by previous Democratic and Republican administrations.
News management: The policy was presented by the US Ambassador to the United Nations, Richard Mills, at a monthly meeting on the Middle East at the UN Security Council.
- Mills said the Biden administration would support a two-state solution, which he said was “the best way to ensure that Israel remains a democratic and Jewish state.”
- He added that the new administration will base its policies on consultations with both sides – instead, the Trump administration has not spoken to the Palestinians for three years.
- Citing the large gaps between Israeli and Palestinian leaders, Mills said the administration believes its goal should be to maintain the possibility of a two-state solution in the future, while focusing on improving the situation on the ground, mainly in Gaza. .
Mills said Biden would encourage Israel and the Palestinians to avoid unilateral steps that will make a two-state solution more difficult to achieve – such as annexation, settlement building, demolition of Palestinian homes by Israel, and payments to Palestinians by terrorists.
- He said the Biden administration would renew ties with the Palestinian Authority, which boycotted the Trump administration after moving the US embassy to Jerusalem.
- Mills added that the United States will renew economic and humanitarian aid to the Palestinians and reopen diplomatic missions that have been closed by the Trump administration – such as the PLO office in Washington and the US consulate general in Jerusalem.
- He added that the Biden administration would oppose unilateral or biased resolutions that would identify Israel in international forums.
What’s next: Mills said Biden welcomed the normalization agreements between Israel and the Arab countries, but did not see them as a substitute for Israeli-Palestinian peace. He added that Biden would like to further promote normalization agreements in a way that supports the momentum of a two-state solution.