Excerpt from Trump’s Time Magazine Interview

Peloni:  Trump’s Time Magazine interview provides an important context for Trump’s vision for peace in the Middle East.  It should be seen as both significant and relevant that as Trump addresses questions put to him about revisiting the TSS, that he raises the topic of October 7, unsolicited, more than once for context, while also chastising those who try to ignore the relevance of that horror.  Also while being pressed on the topic of the TSS, Trump clearly states that there are alternatives to consider, while also noting that the though he wants everyone to be happy, we need to see who can be happy.

Time

[EXCERPT]

Well, another war with a high death toll is happening in the Middle East. You reportedly told Prime Minister Netanyahu that you wanted him to end the war in Gaza before you took office. What did he say?

I think that, before I talk about that, I think that the Middle East is an easier problem to handle than what’s happening with Russia and Ukraine. Okay, I just want to say that up front. The Middle East is going to get solved. The Middle East has been—it’s a horrible thing. October 7 was a horrible thing. Everyone is forgetting conveniently about October 7, but that was a horrible day for the world, not for Israel, for the world. And I think the Middle East is going to get—as we speak, things are happening very productively on the Middle East. I think the Middle East is going to get solved. I think it’s more complicated than the Russia-Ukraine, but I think it’s, it’s, it’s easier to solve.

Did Netanyahu give you assurances about when he would end the war? 

Um, I don’t want to say that, but I think he feels confident that—I think he feels very confident in me, and I think he knows I want it to end. I want everything to end. I want, I don’t want people killed, you know? I don’t want people from either side killed, and that includes whether it’s Russia, Ukraine, or whether it’s the Palestinians and the Israelis and all of the, you know, the different entities that we have in the Middle East. There’s so many different entities. But I don’t want people killed.

When you say productive things are happening, can you be more specific? 

No, I can’t. I mean, I’d love to be, I would so love to be, but I can’t. I will be. We’re going to sit down in a period of time, hopefully soon, and I’ll tell you all the things that are happening. But there are some very productive things happening. I do think—okay, because I’m looking at two, two primary fronts, right? You have the Russia-Ukraine, and you have this, and there are other problems also. But look, when North Korea gets involved, that’s another element that’s a very complicating factor. And I know Kim Jong Un, I get along very well with Kim Jong Un. I’m probably the only one he’s ever really dealt with. When you think about it, I am the only one he’s ever dealt with. But you have a lot of very bad complicating factors there, but we’ll sit down and we’ll at the end of each of these, or both, maybe simultaneously, we’ll sit down and I’ll show you what a good job I did.

You mentioned the Palestinian people. In your first term, your administration put forward the most comprehensive plan for a two-state solution in a long time. Do you still support that plan?

I support a plan of peace, and it can take different forms. When I did the Abraham Accords, that should have been loaded up with people, you know. I made a statement. I think they didn’t add one country. Think of it. They didn’t add one country to the Abraham Accords. We had the four countries, very important countries, but that should have been loaded up with Middle Eastern countries.

Do you still support a two-state solution?

I support whatever solution we can do to get peace. There are other ideas other than two state, but I support whatever, whatever is necessary to get not just peace, a lasting peace. It can’t go on where every five years you end up in tragedy. There are other alternatives.

Your incoming ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, supports the settlement movement and Israel annexing the West Bank. The real question at the heart of this, sir, is, do you want to get a two-state deal done, outlined in your Peace to Prosperity deal that you put forward, or are you willing to let Israel annex the West Bank?

So what I want is a deal where there’s going to be peace and where the killing stops.

Would you tell Israel—Bibi tried last time and you stopped him. Would you do it again this time? 

We’ll see what happens. Yeah, I did. I stopped him. But we’ll see what happens. October 7 was a very terrible day. You know, October 7. People are forgetting about it. They don’t ever mention. It was a tragic day. The other thing that’s happening are the hostages, where are the hostages, why aren’t they back? Well, they could be gone. They could be gone. I think Hamas is probably saying, Wow, the hostages are gone. That’s what they want.

So there’s a scenario where you would allow Israel to annex the West Bank? 

I will—what I’m doing and what I’m saying again, I’ll say it again, I want a long lasting peace. I’m not saying that’s a very likely scenario, but I want a long lasting peace, a peace where we don’t have an October 7 in another three years. And there are numerous ways you can do it. You can do it two state, but there are numerous ways it can be done. And I’d like to see, who can be happy? But I’d like to see everybody be happy. Everybody go about their lives, and people stop from dying. That includes on many different fronts. I mean, we have some tremendous world problems that we didn’t have when I was president. You know, when I left, we had, we had an Iran that was not very threatening. They had no money. They weren’t giving money to Hamas. They weren’t giving money to Hezbollah.

Iran recently plotted to have you assassinated. What are the chances of going to war with Iran during your next term?

Anything can happen. Anything can happen. It’s a very volatile situation. I think the most dangerous thing right now is what’s happening, where Zelensky has decided, with the approval of, I assume, the President, to start shooting missiles into Russia. I think that’s a major escalation. I think it’s a foolish decision. But I would imagine people are waiting until I get in before anything happens. I would imagine. I think that would be very smart to do that.

Do you trust Netanyahu?

I don’t trust anybody.

Can I ask, Did Elon Musk meet with the Iranians at your behest? 

I don’t know that he met with them.

Reportedly he met with the Iranians.

I don’t know. He didn’t tell me that.