‘The US President revels in his self-appointed role as peacemaker-in-chief – but his attention span is notoriously short and keeping him engaged in Middle East will be a challenge’
Donald Trump was in his element.
Standing in the Knesset, the Israeli Parliament, he beamed as lawmakers gave him a lengthy standing ovation. “Nice place,” he said, sounding a lot like a real-estate developer.
It marked the first such address by a US President since 2008, when George W Bush spoke in the Knesset to mark Israel’s 60th anniversary. Hyper-competitive Trump will have been aware of this as he basked in his hero’s welcome.
At one point, two left-wing members of the Knesset were expelled from the chamber for holding up a sign saying “Recognise Palestine”. But Trump was unfazed, hailing the “historic dawn of a new Middle East”, which he said would usher in a golden age, ending the terror and death that has dogged the region.
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In traditional fashion, the US President soon veered wildly off script. In an hour-long speech, he took swipes at his democratic predecessors Joe Biden and Barack Obama, and rambled about pet projects such as the decision to rebrand the Department of Defence as the Department of War.
Smarting from his failure to so far win a Nobel Peace Prize, he spoke about all the wars he claims to have ended. “My personality is all about stopping wars and it seems to work,” he said.
He meandered onto Iran, saying “wouldn’t it be nice” to get a peace deal – but then said his top priority was to “get Russia done”.
Trump underlined America’s support for Israel, and said the US would stand with them in the vows: “Never forget and never again”. He heaped praise on Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu, saying: “He’s not the easiest guy to deal with, but that’s what makes him great.”
Smashing diplomatic taboos, Trump even asked Israel’s President Isaac Herzog to pardon Netanyahu from future corruption prosecutions. The Israeli PM faces fraud, bribery and breach of trust charges, which Netanyahu denies, which include taking inappropriate gifts of cigars and champagne.
Trump said: “Hey, I have an idea. Mr President, why don’t you give him a pardon? Cigars and some champagne – who the hell cares?”
But he also made it clear that the time for war was over. “You’ve won,” he said. “Now it is time to translate these victories against terrorists on the battlefield into the ultimate prize of peace and prosperity for the entire Middle East.”
The US President clearly revels in his self-appointed role as peacemaker-in-chief. But his attention span is notoriously short and the speech was a victory lap rather than a real assessment of the long road ahead.
There are many obstacles to securing a lasting peace. Keeping Trump engaged in the process will be one of them.
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