Trump official suggests 2020 Israeli-Palestinian peace plan will be back in play

Jacob Magid is The Times of Israel's US bureau chief

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during an event with US President Donald Trump in the East Room of the White House in Washington, Tuesday, January 28, 2020, to announce the Trump administration's much-anticipated plan to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during an event with US President Donald Trump in the East Room of the White House in Washington, Tuesday, January 28, 2020, to announce the Trump administration's much-anticipated plan to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

The Israeli-Palestinian peace plan advanced by President-elect Donald Trump during his first term will likely be back on the table when he returns to office, according to a former senior aide who reportedly has been tapped to help lead the transition team.

Vision for Peace Conceptual Map published by the Trump Administration on January 28, 2020.

The Trump peace plan envisioned Israel being able to annex all of its settlements in the West Bank while granting the Palestinians a pathway to a semi-contiguous state on the remaining territory. The plan was swiftly rejected by the Palestinian Authority, while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu welcomed the plan with reservations. His settler allies, who are now part of his coalition, rejected the proposal due to its inclusion of a potential Palestinian state.

In an interview with CNN, Brian Hook, who served as Trump’s special envoy for Iran, is asked to respond to an assertion by Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister that normalization with Israel is off the table without the establishment of a Palestinian state.

Highlighting the 2020 peace plan, Hook tells CNN, “much of that work is still relevant today,” adding that the proposal contains all of the conditions Riyadh is seeking in order to normalize with Israel.

However, Hook acknowledges that no one is “in much of a mood” to discuss a two-state solution following Hamas’s October 7 onslaught.

“There are many Israelis right now who are focused on other things, specifically keeping them safe from this kind of evil terrorism that they endured on October 7,” he says.

Citing three sources familiar with the matter, CNN reported yesterday that Hook will lead Trump’s transition team at the State Department.

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