Steve Witkoff, US President Donald Trump’s point person on the Middle East, voiced optimism at efforts to bring Saudi Arabia into the Abraham Accords, a series of normalization agreements between Israel and Arab states that Trump brokered during his first term.
He also says he sees potential for normalization by Lebanon and Syria, after recent setbacks by forces in the two countries with ties to Iran’s clerical government.
“Lebanon, by the way, could actually mobilize and come into the Abraham Peace Accords, as could potentially Syria. So, so many profound changes are happening,” Witkoff tells an event in Washington for the American Jewish Committee.
“While a nice idea in theory, it’s probably as realistic for now as the notion President Trump himself offered as a political candidate last year about the Islamic Republic of Iran joining a deal to recognize Israel and have normal relations”, Middle East Institute commented on Witcoff’s statement
“I support the notion of creative thinking about the Middle East that moves beyond the current parade of horribles plaguing the region, ” Anton Mardasov wrote in the MEI.
“But to paraphrase the late, great Lebanese-American radio DJ Casey Kasem, we need to keep our feet on the ground while we’re reaching for the stars”. He said
In his second term in office, Trump faces a Middle East undergoing multifaceted upheaval and an Islamic Republic of Iran currently in its weakest and most isolated position since the founding of the regime in 1979. Yet far from permanently subdued, Tehran continues to move closer to building a nuclear weapon, and it is trying to preserve its regional network of proxies and non-state allies.
There’s been decades of peace between Egypt and Jordan and Israel. Neither Egypt nor Jordan seem concerned that Israel is going to invade them. Nor is Israel concerned about being invaded by them.
“The question is: Would most Lebanese like to be in the same situation? Or is it popular among Lebanese to keep fighting with Israel for some reason?”
An analyst commented on the issue
News Agencies