Trump about Palestine: I like two-state solution
President Donald Trump on Thursday expressed a preference for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, but again said he would be happy with any framework acceptable to the two sides, elaborating on comments he made last week at a joint press conference with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“No, I like the two-state solution,” Trump told Reuters in an interview, in response to a question on whether he had backed away from that framework, which for decades has been the internationally backed formula for resolving the conflict. “But I ultimately like what the both parties like,” Trump added.
“People have been talking about it for so many years now,” the president went on, and noted: “It so far hasn’t worked.” He then repeated: “I like this two-state solution, but I am satisfied with whatever both parties agree with.”
During his White House press conference with Netanyahu last Wednesday, Trump broke with longstanding US policy by saying two states were not necessarily the only acceptable solution to the conflict. “I’m looking at two-state and one-state, and I like the one that both parties like,” he said.
Also in the Reuters interview, Trump said he would not allow the US nuclear arsenal to fall behind that of other countries, and vowed to keep America “at the top of the pack.”
“I am the first one that would like to see … nobody have nukes,” Trump said, “but we’re never going to fall behind any country even if it’s a friendly country, we’re never going to fall behind on nuclear power.”
Trump, asked about a December tweet in which he said the US should “greatly strengthen and expand its nuclear capability,” said that “It would be wonderful, a dream would be that no country would have nukes, but if countries are going to have nukes, we’re going to be at the top of the pack.”
Source: timesofisrael.com