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Amos Gilead to Trump: Don T Present Your Plan He Was a Key Figure in Managing Relations with DIPLOMATIC AFFAIRS Egypt and Jordan

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Amos Gilead to Trump: Don T Present Your Plan He Was a Key Figure in Managing Relations with DIPLOMATIC AFFAIRS Egypt and Jordan עמוד 1 'ninnr-* *M)in7imn n^ann ♦ :oc K£RZL AMOS GILEAD addresses the Institute for Policy and Strategy. (IPS) Amos Gilead to Trump: Don t present your plan he was a key figure in managing relations with DIPLOMATIC AFFAIRS Egypt and Jordan. His roles in the IDF includ­ • By HERB KEINON ed head of the Military Intelligence Research Division; IDF Spokesperson; Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories; and ith Prime Minister Benjamin Net­ Military Secretary to prime minister Yitzhak anyahu set to travel to Washington Rabin. Sunday, Amos Gilead - a former Gilead, who admitted that he does not know Wsenior IDF and defense ministry officialwhat - has is in the Trump plan outside of hints that a word of advice to the Americans: Don’t roll are being leaked, said he cannot imagine that out the peace plan, please. it will be accepted by the Palestinians, and that At least not unless they are at least 75% sure if they are not on board, then the Arab world that the Arab world will not reject it. And the will not adopt it, because to do so would be to chances of the Arab states accepting a plan shake their own internal stability. that will be turned down by the Palestinians - “They will look at the plan and say Inshallah which they have already said they will do - is (God willing), it is impressive, we will discuss almost nil, Gilead said in an interview with it - that is their method - but they don’t want The Jerusalem Post. internal turmoil.” “I don’t know what is in Trump’s plan, but Gilead said that Palestinian Authority Pres­ I am concerned because it does not look to ident Mahmoud Abbas’s “strength is in his me like it will be accepted either by the Pal­ weakness. He can’t compete against Israel, but estinians or the Arabs,” Gilead said of the he can say to the Arab states, ‘Don’t you dare long-awaited blueprint for peace that the recognize the Trump plan’.” Administration has been working on for some And they won’t, he said, because to do so two years, and which Netanyahu is surely to would be seen as a form of treason to the Arab discuss with US President Donald Trump when cause. they meet in the White House early next week. “My impression from the Arabs is that they And if the Palestinians and Arabs states reject will not do anything that is considered a a plan put forth by the United States, the betrayal of the Palestinians, not because they most powerful and influential nation in the love them, but because they love themselves.” world, then that means “There is no hope, no Gilead said that if the Arab states, as part political horizon, and that will only lead to of the plan, publicly open diplomatic or eco­ frustration,” Gilead said. Putting forth a plan nomic ties with Israel, that will be viewed as a that would likely be rejected would be very betrayal of a deep seated Arab issue. destabilizing, he warned, because it would The Arabs have no problems deepening their show clearly that there is no peace option. ties with us underground, but not in having Gilead today is the head of IDC Herzliya’s normal ties,” he said. “The Arab states have Institute for Policy and Strategy and chairman discovered Israel’s value, and I am happy about of the Herzliya Conference. Prior to that, he that - personally I have spent many hours on served for some 40 years in senior Defense these things, and they are impressive - but Ministry and IDF positions. As director of the they are under the ground.” Defense Ministry’s powerful Policy and Politi­ cal-Military Affairs bureau from 2003 to 2017, See TRUMP, Page 21 עמוד 2 Gilead said that Sisi “saved “Overall, tourism is blos­ TRUMP the stability in the Middle soming because there is secu­ Continued from Page 15 East,” and put an end to an rity, and this is worth billions. emerging Muslim Brother­ We are destroying UNRWA Gilead dismissed as an “illu­ hood alliance between Egypt - which is despicable organi­ sion” thinking that the Arab and Turkey that would have zation - but not bringing an world would make peace or dramatically altered the alternative, and in the end normalize ties with Israel region. “Since then,” Gile­ counting on it to distribute without an agreement with ad said, “Turkey was greatly money in Gaza.” the Palestinians. And he was weakened as a threatening Gilead said that regardless unimpressed by the small force in the region.” of the moral problem in trans­ signs of normalization that Regarding the Palestinians, ferring money to the PA that have taken place over the Gilead said that Israel was is then used to pay terrorists, last few months, such as the “making big mistakes” in its Israel’s objective needs to be Special Olympics in which policies toward the Palestin­ to save lives. “If you don’t an Israeli team participated ians, especially toward Pal­ have a better plan, and we in this week in Abu Dhabi, estinian Authority President don’t have a plan, then at or Saudi permission for Air Mahmoud Abbas, whom he least save lives. That Israel is a India to fly over its airspace on said Israel will “miss” when relatively quiet country, that flights to and from Israel. he is gone. Jerusalem is quiet, who would “That is nothing,” he said of As opposed to Yasser Ara­ believe that? It is a phenom­ these and similar moves. “It fat, whom Gilead termed a enal achievement.” He gives doesn’t’ impress me. I’m not mega-murderer and arch-ter­ the IDF, Military Intelligence, looking for gestures, but for rorist - and someone he said the Shin Bet (Israel Security real things. I want our chief- he recommended against Agency), and the police the of-staff or head of the air force negotiating peace with - majority of the credit, but said or navy to go to Egypt in the Abbas is different. that the PA has also played a middle of the day and be “Today Abbas is against ter­ role in the quiet. received by an honor guard. rorism, and we present him as “As long as the PA is acting After 40 years [of peace], why a terrorist,” he said. “He is not against terrorism, we should hasn’t that happened?” a terrorist. No one in the secu­ not take action against its The reason, he said, is sim­ rity establishment will say he sources of money, because ple: “They are afraid of nor­ is a terrorist.” without money, it is like a car malization. The public is not But he supports terrorism, without gas,” he said. in favor of it, and they are Gilead is reminded, especially Gilead warned that if the PA worried that if they do it, it through payments to terror­ collapses and the West Bank will shake their stability.” ists and their families. explodes as a result, it could Gilead said that the security “That is how he maintains have a spillover effect in Jor­ and intelligence cooperation his legitimacy,” he responds, dan, which is facing severe between Israel and the Sunni “and it has been like this from economic problems and has Arab states is both strong many years. It is not new.” taken in 1.5 million refugees and welcome. “But it is not Gilead said the government from Syria. enough, because it is not sta­ made a mistake last month “Every day we should, and ble and could change.” He lik­ when it decided to deduct I did this when I was in the ened this to a tree with only from the money it transfers security establishment, wake one root that could easily be to the Palestinians the money up and ask, “How is Jordan swept away in a political hur­ the PA pays out to terrorists doing today?’ Jordan is sta­ ricane. And such hurricanes and their families. He said the ble,” he said, adding, “We are not unheard of in the Mid­ US is also making a mistake in need to be concerned that it dle East. cutting financial assistance to does not deteriorate.” • Gilead pointed to Iran, with the PA. which Israel once had close Israel, Gilead said, needs to ties, as an example of how decide whether it wants Abbas drastically things can change. and the Palestinian Authori­ He also pointed to Turkey, ty to continue, or whether it whose President Recep Tayyip wants to set up a new military Erdogan is implacably hostile administration and reassert toward Israel, but a country its complete control of the with whom Israel had very West Bank strong ties before he came to “It is politically legitimate to power in 2002. God forbid, he say, ‘I want to occupy the ter­ said, that the Muslim Broth­ ritories, or annex them,” he erhood would gain control of said. “OK, then set up a mil­ Egypt. itary administration, some­ The peace agreement with thing that costs billions.” Egypt would not survive the Gilead obviously does not Muslim Brotherhood in power want Israel to travel that there, he said. He called Egyp­ path, and as a result believes tian President Abdel-Fattah it needs to prevent the col­ al-Sisi “a miracle,” and said lapse of the PA, not because his ousting of Muslim Broth­ he thinks a negotiated peace erhood’s Mohamed Morsi as is just around the corner, but president of Egypt in 2013 - because the current security after a year in power - was an situation in Israel is good, and event of historic proportions.
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