From the Liveblog of
Thursday, February 13, 2025
White House showers praise on Jordanian king after tense meeting with Trump
Jacob Magid is The Times of Israel's US bureau chief
The White House is working overtime to hype up Jordan’s King Abdullah after hosting him Tuesday for what at times appeared to be an uncomfortable meeting, during which Trump stood by his plan to permanently relocate Palestinians outside of Gaza in countries such as Jordan.
The White House releases a video Wednesday afternoon of Trump hailing the Jordanian people and their leader.
“You are very, very fantastic people with tremendous brilliance and energy… you have a king who is a tremendous man,” Trump says while sitting at the Resolute Desk in the Oval Office.
“You are lucky to have him. You’re going to have a great life. You have a great king,” Trump adds.
President Trump’s Message to the People of Jordan:
“You are very, very fantastic people with tremendous brilliance and energy… you have a King who is a tremendous man… @KingAbdullahII is one of the true great leaders of the world.” ???????????????? pic.twitter.com/eKjTU4sqTw
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) February 12, 2025
Earlier Wednesday, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt closed her press conference by sharing what she said was a message from Trump, stressing that Abdullah during their meeting on Tuesday reiterated his stance in favor of allowing Palestinians to remain in Gaza while it’s rebuilt. Leavitt noted that Trump thinks relocating Gazans elsewhere would be “more majestic” but that Washington is working with its Arab allies to advance a solution that will bring peace to the region.
The idea of taking in Palestinians is highly unpopular in Jordan and Amman has warned that it would likely destabilize the kingdom, which has been a reliable US regional partner for the past several decades.
