WASHINGTON — Massad Boulos, President-elect Donald Trump’s advisor on Middle Eastern and Arab affairs, stated that the United States needs to discuss laying out a “roadmap” to Palestinian statehood in order to establish relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia.
Saudi officials have made it clear that they would not form ties with Israel without progress towards a Palestinian state. Boulos, a Lebanese-American billionaire and Trump’s son-in-law Tiffany, emphasized this point, which is significant as other Trump appointees, as well as Trump himself, are seen as close to the Israeli right, which opposes Palestinian statehood.
“I believe that the issue of a roadmap leading to a Palestinian state is a crucial part of the discussions between the United States and Saudi Arabia,” Boulos said in a recent interview with Le Point, a French magazine. “It is definitely a very important aspect.”
Boulos, 53, connected the focus on Palestinian statehood to expanding the Abraham Accords, the normalization agreements between Israel and four Arab countries in 2020, which were a key foreign policy achievement of Trump’s first term.
Trump has expressed interest in expanding the Abraham Accords. Boulos mentioned in the interview that many more countries would establish ties with Israel if Saudi Arabia did so.
“It is important to note that Saudi Arabia is not currently demanding the immediate creation of a Palestinian state, but rather a vision and a road map for it,” he explained. “Today, the president’s priority is to resume discussions on the Abraham Accords, starting with Saudi Arabia. Because we know very well, and the president has stated, that once we reach an agreement with Saudi Arabia regarding Israel, at least 12 other Arab countries will be ready to follow suit immediately.”
It remains to be seen how much influence Boulos will have with Trump. Another relative, Jared Kushner, led the Abraham Accords in Trump’s first term and was involved in various other issues. Boulos had supported Trump in Michigan, a state with a significant Arab-American population, which Trump won.
“Massad is a successful lawyer and a respected figure in the business world, with extensive international experience,” Trump said when announcing Boulos’ position on Truth Social, the platform he owns. “He has long been a supporter of Republican and Conservative values, an asset to my Campaign, and played a key role in forming strong new alliances within the Arab American Community. Massad is a negotiator and a strong advocate for PEACE in the Middle East.”
Prior to the attack by Hamas on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, which triggered Israel’s multi-front war, a deal with Saudi Arabia was a top priority for President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. However, Netanyahu opposes the establishment of a Palestinian state and has reinforced that stance since the Oct. 7 attack. The majority of Israelis also do not support Palestinian statehood.
Similarly, Mike Huckabee also opposes a Palestinian state and supports Israel maintaining control over the West Bank indefinitely, which would prevent Palestinian statehood. Trump’s former ambassador to Israel, David Friedman, is also in favor of Israel’s settlements in the West Bank.
Trump has appointed other pro-Israel individuals to key positions, including Rep. Mike Waltz as national security adviser, Rep. Elise Stefanik as United Nations ambassador, Fox News pundit Pete Hegseth as defense secretary, and Marco Rubio as secretary of state.
Boulos did not comment on calls from far-right figures in Netanyahu’s coalition to annex the West Bank but emphasized that there would be a “very clear and precise policy on this issue” following Trump’s inauguration on Jan. 20.
Prior to the signing of the Abraham Accords, Trump had proposed a peace plan that would have granted expanded autonomy to Palestinians in the West Bank, while allowing Israeli settlements to remain and maintaining Israeli security control over the entire area.
Although Palestinian leaders rejected the proposal for not including statehood, Boulos believes that it effectively endorsed a Palestinian state.
“If you look at the plan presented by President Trump in 2020, it clearly outlined the eventual establishment of a Palestinian state,” he stated.
Regarding Iran, Boulos echoed Trump’s position by advocating for a new nuclear deal to replace the one that Trump withdrew from in 2018 at Netanyahu’s urging. Boulos also mentioned that Trump has not called for regime change in Iran. “He has emphasized the need for a nuclear deal and expressed willingness to negotiate with the current regime,” Boulos added.
During the interview, Boulos was cautious and refrained from sharing too much information before Trump officially took office, adhering to the principle that the United States should only have one president at a time. This approach differed from Trump’s already assertive foreign policy actions.
“As you are aware, we are still in the transition period, and it is not appropriate for us to interfere in U.S. foreign policy while the Biden administration remains in power and guides American diplomacy,” Boulos remarked.
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