US President Joe Biden speaks at Augusta Victoria Hospital in east Jerusalem on Friday. Biden announced a $100 million investment in a network of hospitals.
Evan Vucci / AP
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Evan Vucci / AP
US President Joe Biden speaks at Augusta Victoria Hospital in east Jerusalem on Friday. Biden announced a $100 million investment in a network of hospitals.
Evan Vucci / AP
President Biden reiterated his commitment to the “two-state solution” – the long-sought vision in which an independent Palestinian state and Israel coexist – on Friday, when he talks with Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas in Bethlehem in the occupied West Bank.
“The United States and my administration will not give up our efforts to bring the Palestinians, the Israelis, and both sides closer together,” Biden said. He added that he believes that with Israel improving its relations with its neighbors in the Middle East, that momentum can “restore the peace process between the Palestinian people and the Israelis.”
But in the immediate future, both Abbas and Biden admit that the political time is not yet right for peace talks to resume. In their joint statement, Abbas called on Biden to continue to reverse Trump’s policies on aid and other issues, and pledged to help improve the daily lives of the Palestinian people.
“I know that the goals of two states seem too far-fetched, while outrages like restrictions on movement and travel or everyday concerns about your child’s safety are real, and they happen. immediately,” Biden said.
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Biden noted that he reversed Trump’s decision to cut aid to the Palestinians, saying that the US had provided more than half a billion dollars in 2021. Biden said the US would provide $100 million for services care for Palestinians and provide $200 million to United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East (building on $400 million in aid by 2021) .
In his own statement, Abbas demanded that Biden reopen the US Consulate in East Jerusalem, remove the PLO from any US terrorist list and pave the way for the PLO to reopen its office in Washington – which was forced to close under Trump. Abbas also urged Biden to stop Israeli settlements and occupations.
After 74 years, Abbas said, “isn’t the time for this occupation to end and for our stalwarts to once again gain their freedom and independence?”
Biden meets Abbas after two days in Israel
Biden’s comments come as he continues his first trip to the Middle East as president. He began his trip with a two-day visit to Israel, where he signed a declaration with Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid that Iran would never secure nuclear weapons.
His Friday visit to the occupied West Bank was an attempt to restore relations that were already severely strained under former President Donald Trump.
Earlier, on Friday, Biden visited Augusta Victoria Hospital in East Jerusalem, where he announced a $100 million US investment in a network of six hospitals.
The President will visit Saudi Arabia next
Biden will end his Middle East tour with the most controversial leg of his tour: a visit to Saudi Arabia, where he will meet Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
US intelligence assessment bin Salman approved the 2018 operation that led to the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Biden later said he would make Saudi Arabia “normal people like them”, and that he was under pressure from human rights groups about his decision to visit the kingdom.
The day before the meeting with the crown prince, Biden repeatedly said he would raise the issue of Khashoggi’s death directly, saying, “My position on Khashoggi has been taken completely, clearly.”
Ahead of Mr Biden’s visit, on Friday, Saudi Arabia announced it would allow civilian flights to pass through its airspace from Israel, which would allow airlines to shorten flight times between Israel. and countries like India and China.
“As we mark this pivotal moment, Saudi Arabia’s decision can help build momentum toward Israel’s deeper integration into the region, including with Saudi Arabia,” Biden said in a statement. declare.
