The Trump administration closed the Palestine Liberation Organization’s office in Washington Monday amid frustrations with the PLO’s inability to come to the table for peace negotiations with Israel.
“The United States will always stand with our friend and ally, Israel,” National security adviser John Bolton said in a speech Monday, “The Trump administration will not keep the office open when the Palestinians refuse to take steps to start direct and meaningful negotiations with Israel.”
State Department Spokesperson Heather Nauert issued a harshly worded statement after the decision deriding the Palestinians for not seeking a “lasting, comprehensive peace” with Israel or engaging in administration-led peace talks. The statement reads:
The administration has determined after careful review that the office of the General Delegation of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) in Washington should close. We have permitted the PLO office to conduct operations that support the objective of achieving a lasting, comprehensive peace between Israelis and the Palestinians since the expiration of a previous waiver in November 2017. However, the PLO has not taken steps to advance the start of direct and meaningful negotiations with Israel. To the contrary, PLO leadership has condemned a U.S. peace plan they have not yet seen and refused to engage with the U.S. government with respect to peace efforts and otherwise. As such, and reflecting congressional concerns, the administration has decided that the PLO office in Washington will close at this point. This decision is also consistent with administration and congressional concerns with Palestinian attempts to prompt an investigation of Israel by the International Criminal Court.
The United States continues to believe that direct negotiations between the two parties are the only way forward. This action should not be exploited by those who seek to act as spoilers to distract from the imperative of reaching a peace agreement. We are not retreating from our efforts to achieve a lasting and comprehensive peace.
The move comes on the heels of the US cutting hundreds of millions in aide to the Palestinian state and refugee agency.
Husam Zomlot, the Palestinian representative to Washington, told the Wall Street Journal that the move to close the PLO office is “a historic low.”
“We believe this is about the implementing of Israel’s grocery list, they are implementing it rather than pressuring us. All of this is making sure the U.S. will never ever play the role of the peacemaker,” Mr. Zomlot said.