WARSAW, Poland — Jared Kushner told a diplomatic assembly that he is withholding the details of his Middle East peace plan until after Israel’s elections in April, according to multiple sources in the room.
Kushner, President Trump’s son-in-law and a key White House adviser, took questions during a private session at the Middle East peace ministerial in Warsaw co-hosted by the United States and Poland. He kept his cards close to the vest for the most part, but the session moderator put him on the spot with a direct question about whether he would unveil the long-awaited plan before Israeli voters go to the polls April 9.
“It was magisterial, it was brilliant,” a European diplomat in the room told the Washington Examiner, offering wry praise for Kushner’s performance. “He said nothing. He said he wanted it to be a collaborative effort (in which he would share not details, with anyone).”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is staking his political career on his relationship with President Trump’s administration. Israel’s attorney general is mulling whether to indict Netanyahu on corruption charges related to allegations of trading political favors for positive media attention, a decision that could come before the elections.
Kushner explained his reticence, according to multiple diplomats present, by arguing that past efforts to broker an agreement between the Israelis and the Palestinians failed when leaks of the details of prospective compromise forced regional players to denounce the proposals, sabotaging the talks. “It was very eloquent,” the diplomat said. “He’s a good politician. He said nothing.”
