Israeli Ambassador: Trump to release peace plan in early 2019

Israel’s U.N. ambassador says the Trump administration has told the Israeli government that it expects to release its long-awaited Israeli-Palestinian peace plan in the beginning of 2019.

By Associated Press and World Israel News Staff

Danny Danon told a group of U.N. reporters Tuesday that there is “a window of opportunity” for the U.S. to present the plan without interfering in Israeli elections likely scheduled for May or June.

Otherwise, he said, it will have to wait until next fall.

Danon said Israel knows the U.S. plan is complete but doesn’t know the details.

“We are open-minded,” he said. “We will look at it. We will negotiate.”

But Danon said the Palestinians won’t consider the plan. They accuse U.S. President Donald Trump of being biased toward Israel.

Danon’s remarks arrived on the heels of statements by U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman regarding the timing of the plan’s release.

“The United States remains committed to sharing its vision for peace with Israel, the Palestinians and other regional and international stakeholders at the appropriate time,” said Friedman on Monday following reports in the Palestinian media that Trump’s “deal of the century” was being shelved until the political situation in Israel stabilizes.

“Our timing, our strategy and our messaging is and will be entirely our own. We intend to release the president’s vision when the administration concludes that we have maximized its potential for acceptance, execution and implementation,” Friedman added.