Milestones achieved by Israel under Trump-administration
The United States of America was the first country to recognize Israel and ever since has been its closest partner. Israel is a major determinant in framing the US policies on the Middle East. President Donald Trump of the Republican party took the charge as the 45th president of the USA in January 2017. His administration has kept showering the blessings over Israel throughout the reign.
Following are the major events that took place under his regime with Israel:
Recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel
On 6 Dec 2017, U.S. President Donald Trump formally recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. He also approved a plan to move the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem and reversing nearly seven decades of US foreign policy. This controversial move brought strong reactions from Palestinians, the Arab world, China, European leaders, Pop Francis, and many others. This isolated US from the rest of the world on such a sensitive issue.
Opening of Embassy in Jerusalem
On 14 May 2018, the U.S. inaugurated its embassy in Jerusalem on the day of the 70th anniversary of the state of Israel while Palestinians were protesting at the Gaza border. This was another controversial move by the US as the international community considers East Jerusalem as occupied territory. Israel captured East Jerusalem in the Arab-Israel war of 1967 and annexed it with another half of the city. This move was backed by some Arab leaders as well.
Declaring Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights
The Golan Heights is an important strategic location, was a Syrian territory. The hilly plateau is spread over 1200 square-kilometers, was occupied by Israel in a six-day Arab-Israel war of 1967. Israel later annexed the territory in 1981. But this annexation was not recognized internationally. Despite Israeli occupation, US President Donald Trump signed the order on 25 March 2019 to recognize the sovereignty of Israel over the Golan Heights. Syria, Turkey, and Russia, and many others, showed strong disapproval of this lopsided act by the Trump administration.
Endorsement on illegal settlements of West Bank
West Bank was a Jordanian territory that was snatched by Israel in the Arab-Israel war of 1967. This land is internationally regarded as occupied territory and declares all the settlements by Israel as illegal. But, this has not kept Israel from violating international law. But, the US Secretary of state Mike Pompeo announced on 18 November, 20 19, that the United States would no longer view Israeli settlements on the West Bank (and presumably East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights) as inconsistent with international law.
The US Brokered Normalization Agreements
The Trump administration has helped Israel normalize its relationship with the Arab world. On 13 August 2020 United Arab Emirates became the third Arab country to normalize its ties with Israel after Egypt and Jordan, accepted Israel in 1979 and 1994 respectively. The Israel-United Arab Emirates normalization agreement is also referred to as Abraham Accords brokered by the US. The deal was officially signed on 15 September 2020 in Washington DC. With this, the Bahrain-Israel normalization agreement took place. It was formally signed on 15 September 2020 at the White House in Washington DC and made Bahrain the fourth Arab country to recognize Israel. The next in the queue was Sudan, who also announced to accept Israel on October 23, 2020. Then it was Morocco, the next. The country agreed to normalize relations with Israel on December 10, 2020. All these agreements are based on a ‘give and take’ basis and self-interest, keeping the Palestinian cause aside.
Conclusion
The role of the Trump administration in the US-Israel relationship has left all its predecessors behind. The USA did not bring any international stance or law into consideration in favoring Israel. But, ironically, only 22 percent of the Jewish vote could come into the Trump side.