President Trump has started the new year off with calls to end foreign aid to countries that support terrorism. In his first tweet of the new year, Trump called for ending aid to Pakistan. In a series of tweets yesterday, Trump threatened to cut off aid to the Palestinians.
In a series of tweets on Tuesday, Trump said the United States government gives “HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS” to the Palestinians, yet the Palestinians do not appreciate or respect America:
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...
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 2, 2018
Trump asked why Americans should continue to fund Palestine if Palestine is not willing to negotiate with Israel for a peace treaty:
...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?
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 2, 2018
Trump’s statement on Palestine came after United Nations ambassador Nikki Haley said the administration will cease funding the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees if Palestinians don’t negotiate for peace. The United States gives more than $350 million a year to the UNRWA. According to CNN, the United States gave a total of $616 million in aid to Palestinians in 2016.
Haley said, “I think the president has basically said that he doesn’t want to give any additional funding until the Palestinians are agreeing to come back to the negotiation table.”
Speaking to CNN, PLO Secretary General Saeb Erekat said, “So, Mr. Trump. Your ‘Art of the Deal.’ What’s left to negotiate? You’re moving from negotiating to dictating and then you are threatening us if we don’t accept your dictations—that you are going to cut aid. I’m not an independent country. I’m under Israeli occupation. The refugees are the result of Israel.”
Erekat also allegedly accused Trump of wanting to starve Palestinian children.
Multiple Palestinian officials also called the decision “blackmail.”
It is unclear if Trump is planning on cutting off all aid to Palestine entirely, as his tweet did not specifically mention the UNRWA.
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