Reaction To President Trump's Decision To Recognize Jerusalem As The Capital Of Israel

Reuters: Frustration and fury among Arabs at Trump's Jerusalem declaration

CAIRO/AMMAN/BEIRUT (Reuters) - Arabs denounced President Donald Trump’s plan to move the U.S. embassy in Israel to Jerusalem as a slap in the face but few thought their governments would do much in response.

Trump phoned allies in the Middle East late on Tuesday to tell them the United States would acknowledge Jerusalem as the capital of Israel on Wednesday and prepare to move its embassy there.

“It incites feelings of anger among all Muslims and threatens world peace,” said Sheikh Ahmed al-Tayeb, Imam of Egypt’s al-Azhar mosque, one of Islam’s most important institutions.

“The gates of hell will be opened in the West before the East,” he added, warning of the possible reaction.

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More News On Reaction To President Trump's Decision To Recognize Jerusalem As The Capital Of Israel

Jerusalem split between ire and joy by 'historic' Trump shift -- AFP
Palestinians seethe at Trump's 'insane' Jerusalem move -- Reuters
Palestinians call days of rage over US Jerusalem plan -- Aljazeera
Jerusalem Trump: World reacts -- BBC
World Reacts to Trump's Jerusalem Plan -- Bloomberg
EU urges Palestinian 'restraint' over Trump Jerusalem plan -- AFP
Erdogan says US Jerusalem move 'plays into hands' of terrorists -- AFP
Jordan's King joins criticism over Trump's Jerusalem decision -- CNN
Iran 'will not tolerate' Trump Jerusalem 'violation': Rouhani -- AFP
'It's catastrophic': US allies reject Trump's expected Jerusalem pronouncement -- Washington Post
Pope Francis Voices ‘Deep Concern’ Over Trump Plan on Jerusalem -- New York Times

Has President Obama Lost The Trust Of America's Arab Allies?

U.S. President Barack Obama walks with Saudi Arabia's King Salman (R) as he arrives at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, Jan. 27, 2015. REUTERS/Jim Bourg

Amir Taheri, New York Post: Why Arabs distrust Obama

Last week, President Obama finally set a date — May 13 — for Washington’s Arab allies to gather at an “urgent” summit.

Obama made the invitation to calm Arab fears his administration had decided to let Iran acquire full nuclear capability and pursue hegemonic plans in the Mideast. Those fears were grounded in Obama’s readiness to bend over backward to woo the mullahs.

European allies involved in the talks have told Arab officials that in the final phase of negotiations Iran and the United States were often on the same side against unexpected hardness from the French and hesitation from the British.

WNU Editor: If the Arabs feel like this .... I can only imagine on how the Israelis must feel.

Egypt Rejects U.S. Plan For Arab-Israel Normalization

Photo: Egyptian FM Ahmed Aboul Gheit says Israel must make concrete actions. (Reuters)

From Haaretz:

Egypt has rejected an American proposal for gradual normalization between the Arab world and Israel that would have allowed Israeli planes to fly freely through Arab air space.

The idea arose during discussions in Washington last week between Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit, Egyptian intelligence chief Omar Suleiman and senior White House and State Department officials, including National Security Advisor James Jones and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

In an interview with the Saudi newspaper Asharq Al Awsat, Aboul Gheit said that U.S. officials had asked him what the Arab response would be if Washington pressured Israel to reach a peace agreement. He responded that after the Oslo Accords were signed, some Arab states allowed Israeli offices to open in their territory, but today, the Arab world insists on seeing concrete Israeli action before making any further gestures.

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My Comment: This is what I call "Arabs pouring cold water" on the hype that is coming form the White House and their expectations on President Obama's speech.

US Will Not Abandon Arab Allies To Iran, Robert Gates Says

U.S. Secretary of Defence Robert Gates Photo: REUTERS

From The Telegraph:

America offered assurances to its closest Arab allies on Wednesday that President Barack Obama's overtures towards Iran will not damage their interests.

The leading Arab powers, notably Saudi Arabia and Egypt, are deeply concerned about Iran's nuclear ambitions and its rising influence across the Middle East. The Sunni powers rely on America to contain Iran's Shia regime and are concerned about the possible consequences of Mr Obama's conciliatory approach towards the Islamic Republic.

Robert Gates, the US defence secretary, visited Egypt and Saudi Arabia to reassure them that America will not spring a "grand bargain" with Iran on them without warning.

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My Comment: The Arabs are not fools. They now see the U.S. playing hardball on Israel .... a country that Arabs perceive as America's closest ally. If the U.S. is willing to do this to their "closest ally", the Arabs know that they will be treated even worse.

Historically, the Americans have always been very close to the Iranians. In the 1973 OPEC embargo, this relationship got even closer. This changed with the Iranian revolution, and when viewed from a historical perspective, the past 30 years has been an aberration in this relationship. I doubt that it will change overnight to what it once was, but the Arabs have a long memory and they are remembering what U.S. - Iranian relations were like from the 1950s to the late 1970s.

From my point of view .... the U.S. administration is crossing a lot of lines that were never crossed before (both domestically and on the foreign scene) .... the Arabs are noticing this and they have every right to be concerned.