President Donald Trump’s special envoy to the Middle East Jason Greenblatt on Saturday said the long-awaited Middle East peace plan, a.k.a. “Deal of the Century,” would not be unveiled before June 10.
Speaking to Fox News, Greenblatt said he anticipated the deal won’t be released until at least after Ramadan (June 6), the Jewish holiday of Shavuot (June 10 in America), and the presentation of Netanyahu’s new Israeli government (who knows when).
Greenblatt was a surprise guest speaker at an informal Security Council meeting in New York that featured the PA foreign minister, anti-Israeli academics, and council members.
“I’m not a believer in boycotts but in engagement,” Greenblatt told Fox News, and suggested the event had been scheduled deliberately to antagonize Israel, on its Independence Day, and on the same week it had been attacked by 700 Hamas and Islamic Jihad rockets.
“It’s outrageous to hold a meeting like this without addressing the attacks on Israel. This from a body who would not condemn Hamas several months ago,” Greenblatt told Fox News.
He told the UNSC meeting that “the sad truth is that saying the same things, repeating the same tired talking points, but not identifying a realistic way forward, has not and will not lead to peace – Ever!”
Greenblatt insisted he was “hopeful for the sake of the Palestinian people that they get a chance to see” the proposed US deal.
“It’s terribly frustrating for ordinary Palestinians. I meet with them frequently, and this is the message they tell me. They understand they may not like aspects of the plan but are upset that their leaders are saying they won’t even take a look at it. I feel terrible for the Palestinian people,” he explained.
Greenblatt said it would be “false to say that it’s only an economic plan. It’s both political and economic. Once everyone has read and given their thoughts on it, there is still a long way to go before a final signing agreement, and that will be up to the parties themselves to negotiate.”
“It deals with all the core issues. We have developed solutions for each point. So whether you are a teenager or 100 years-old you will see what the consequences are for each point, the good and the bad, and have a real sense of what peace could look like,” Greenblatt concluded.