Qatar:

Solutions acceptable to Palestinians required for Palestine peace

Qatar has refuted US President Donald Trump's controversial proposal for peace between Palestinians and the Israeli regime, saying the demands of the Palestinian people need to be considered in any such plans.

News ID: 445052

Date: 26 May 2019 - 16:53

RNA - Qatar's Foreign Ministry said in a Friday statement that economic development needed for peace in Palestine could not be achieved without "fair political solutions" acceptable to Palestinians.

The statement was referring to the Trump's so-called "Deal of the Century" plan set to be unveiled next month. The White House will lay out the first part of Trump's so-called peace plan when it holds an international conference in Bahrain in late June.

"Tackling these challenges requires sincerity of intent, concerted efforts from regional and international players and appropriate political conditions for economic prosperity," the statement added.

"These conditions would not be achieved without fair political solutions to the issues of the peoples of the region, especially the Palestinian issue, in accordance with a framework acceptable to the brotherly Palestinian people," it added.

Trump’s plan has been dismissed by Palestinian authorities ahead of its unveiling at the end of the holy fasting month of Ramadan and the formation of the new Israeli cabinet.

Speaking in the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah on April 16, Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh lashed out at Trump’s initiative, asserting that it was “born dead.”

Shtayyeh noted that negotiations with the US were useless in the wake of the country’s relocation of its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem al-Quds, which Palestinians consider the capital city of their future state.

Doha's opposition to the US' plan is significant given that the "Deal of the Century" was expected to encourage investment in the West Bank and Gaza Strip by Arab donor countries - including Qatar - before grappling with thorny political issues at the heart of the conflict.

Qatar, a close US ally and home to its largest Middle East air base, has poured millions of dollars into the impoverished Gaza Strip over the past year to boost its ailing economy, and this month pledged an additional $480 million to support both Gaza and the West Bank.

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