Palestinians say Biden administration ‘weak,’ lacks courage in Middle East

The Palestinian Authority’s foreign minister attacks the Biden administration as weak and passive in the Middle East, as violence between Israel and the Palestinians surges to its highest levels in nearly two decades.

“I’m frustrated,” Riad al-Malki tells reporters. “It seemed that [Biden] wanted to change all policies Trump has taken, but not when it comes to Palestine.”

Malki says the Biden administration has been mealy-mouthed about the expansion of Jewish settlements and the escalation of Israeli military raids in the West Bank.

He also lashed out at Biden’s failure to reverse several measures taken by the Trump administration that Palestinians saw as undermining their quest for statehood.

“We have a weak [US] administration when it comes to Palestine,” he says.

The US has not reopened its consulate to the Palestinians in Jerusalem, which was closed under former US president Donald Trump. The Palestinian diplomatic mission in Washington, also closed under Trump, remains shuttered. The US State Department also hasn’t rescinded a Trump administration decision to grant legitimacy to Israeli settlements or reversed other policies that broke with long-standing US positions on Jerusalem.

“We re-engaged with the administration hoping that they would have the strength and the courage to move forward,” al-Malki said. “They did not.”

Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki:

???? Three years have passed since President Biden's promises to Palestine, but we have seen nothing except financial support.

???? The Biden administration has disappointed us, and now our country is turning towards China. pic.twitter.com/jvWxt6zqAC

— gdh news (@gdhnews) August 3, 2023