« For our region to live in peace and security, it’s imperative to achieve independence, freedom, justice, and dignity for all, » the Palestine Liberation Organization’s Negotiations Affairs
Palestinian leadership has expressed to Newsweek what it hopes to see from the upcoming administration of President-elect Joe Biden, who Palestinian officials hope will depart from the current White House’s staunchly pro-Israel policies to seek a more balanced approach on negotiations to end the decades-long Middle East conflict. With roughly two months left in office, President Donald Trump sent Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to Israel, where he became the first top U.S. diplomat to set foot on occupied territories in the West Bank—as well as Syria’s Golan Heights— and cemented the administrations’ legacy of unprecedented alignment with the United States’ closest ally in the region. To Palestinians, it was a parting shot. Now, those tasked with engaging in future talks on behalf of the Palestine Liberation Organization, which represents the Palestinian government led by President Mahmoud Abbas, sees an opportunity to mend ties with Washington as the Biden administration begins its transition. « Palestine looks forward to strengthening relations with the U.S. under the administration of President-elect Joe Biden and VP-elect Kamala Harris, » the Negotiations Affairs Department of the PLO told Newsweek in a statement. Above all, Palestinians seek a U.S. return to international consensus on certain key issues such as an end to Israel’s occupation and settlement construction on lands recognized as Palestinian by United Nations resolutions. They are also seeking the eventual recognition of the eastern half the of the contested capital holy city of Jerusalem’s as a sovereign Palestinian state. « In line with international law and U.N. resolutions, we are also keen on engaging the U.S. in the multilateral effort to advance the Middle East Peace Process, with clear terms of reference and a timeline, towards achieving the internationally endorsed two-state solution on the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem the capital of the State of Palestine, » the statement said. Palestinian leadership sees achieving these goals as intrinsic to its struggle, especially amid historic setbacks suffered under the Trump administration, and the sole way to prevent further deadly unrest. « After 53 years of occupation, oppression, and injustice, the only way forward is to end Israel’s occupation and colonial settlement enterprise towards fulfilling the national rights of the people of Palestine, foremost of which is our right to self-determination, » the PLO’s Negotiations Affairs Department told Newsweek. « For our region to live in peace and security, it’s imperative to achieve independence, freedom, justice, and dignity for all. » Palestinian officials have previously shared their grievances with the Trump administration’s strategy, while Israelis have had few complaints about how the Trump administration has handled the historic feud. Less than a year into his first term, Trump unilaterally declared the entirety of Jerusalem to be the capital of Israel, and soon after moved the U.S. embassy there from Tel Aviv in a move that sparked violent, recurring protests that continue to this day.
