Trump threatens to stop US aid to Palestine over Jerusalem decision
- President Trump says the US is not appreciated for the aids it pays to Palestine and other countries
- He threatens to stop Palestinian aid payment if Palestine does not agree to continue peace talks
- Palestinian president, however, said he would not accept any US peace plan for the Middle East
President Donald Trump has stated that the US may stop aid payments to Palestinians because of their unwillingness to continue new peace talks in the Middle East region.
Trump said, in a Twitter thread, that the US has received "no appreciation or respect" in return for its aid.
His tweets: "It's not only Pakistan that we pay billions of dollars to for nothing, but also many other countries, and others. As an example, we pay the Palestinians HUNDRED OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS a year and get no appreciation or respect. They don’t even want to negotiate a long overdue...
"...peace treaty with Israel. We have taken Jerusalem, the toughest part of the negotiation, off the table, but Israel, for that, would have had to pay more. But with the Palestinians no longer willing to talk peace, why should we make any of these massive future payments to them?
"The days of foreign countries using the American tax payers as their personal piggy bank is over!
Recall that Palestine had voted to reject Trump’s controversial recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
The decision on Jerusalem was overwhelmingly rejected at the United Nations, where 128 countries voted against Trump's decision.
Palestinians had said the move showed the US could not be a neutral peace broker in the region.
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Following Trump’s Jerusalem’s decision in December, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, according to BBC, said he would not accept any US peace plan for the Middle East.
He said: “The United States has proven to be a dishonest mediator in the peace process."
President Abbas referred to Jerusalem as the "eternal capital of the state of Palestine".
It should be noted that Israel claims the whole of the Jerusalem city as its capital while the Palestinians want East Jerusalem to be the capital of a future Palestinian state.
Trump, however, decided to formally recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital, despite being warned it could cause unrest in the region.
He said that he would relocate US embassy there from Tel Aviv, where all other nations have their consulates, to Jerusalem.
Trump’s threat to stop Palestinian aid has sparked up reactions from Palestinians.
A Twitter feed of the governing Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO-NAD) accused Trump of sabotaging their "search for peace".
The organization said, by recognizing Occupied Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, Donald Trump has not only violated of international law but also destroyed peace talks in the region.
Read the tweets: "Palestinian rights are not for sale. By recognizing Occupied Jerusalem as Israel’s capital Donald Trump has not only violated of international law, but he has also singlehandedly destroyed the very foundations of peace and condoned Israel’s illegal annexation of the city.
"We will not be blackmailed. President Trump has sabotaged our search for peace, freedom and justice. Now he dares to blame the Palestinians for the consequences of his own irresponsible actions!
"End of the Statement #Palestine."
Supporting Trump’s tweet, the US envoy to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, said in a remark that the US would stop contributing to the UN's relief agency for Palestinian refugees.
The agency runs education, health, and social programmes.
The US is reportedly its largest governmental donor, handing over almost $370m (£270m) in 2016.
Haley said: "The president has basically said that he doesn't want to give any additional funding, or stop funding, until the Palestinians are agreeing to come back to the negotiation table."
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She hinted that the UN’s vote to reject Trump’s Jerusalem decision and Plaestine’s unwillingness to continue peace talks informed the US decision to stop aids payment.
She said: "The Palestinians now have to show their will that they want to come to the table. As of now, they're not coming to the table but they asked for aid.
"We're not giving the aid, we're going to make sure that they come to the table.”
If Trump decides to withdraw the aids as threatened, there will be a significant negative impact on the UN agency's work as the US contributes almost 30% of its overall funding.
Legit.ng previously reported that President Trump threatened to cut off aids from countries that voted against the United States recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital at the UN General assembly.
Speaking to reporters at the White House, Trump also expressed support for a letter sent Nikki Haley in which she warned member states against supporting the resolution.
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Source: Legit.ng
