Jared Kushner, a White House adviser and President Trump’s son-in-law, drafted a proposal in his Middle East peace plan that would require Jordan to surrender some of its land to Palestinian territories in exchange for some land from Saudi Arabia.
The idea was part of a broader plan that would have roped in countries such as Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, and the United Arab Emirates — not just Israel and the Palestinians.
According to a new book released Tuesday, Kushner, Inc.: Greed. Ambition. Corruption. The Extraordinary Story of Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump, Kushner’s draft called for Jordan to abdicate some land and “in return, Jordan would get land from Saudi Arabia, and that country would get back two Red Sea islands it gave Egypt to administer in 1950.”
“What Kushner wanted … was for the Saudis and Emiratis to provide economic assistance to the Palestinians,” author Vicky Ward wrote. “There were plans for an oil pipeline from Saudi Arabia to Gaza, where refineries and a shipping terminal could be built. The profits would create desalination plants, where Palestinians could find work, addressing the high unemployment rate.”
Kushner said in February the White House was poised to unveil the peace plan after Israel’s election in April. While in Warsaw, Kushner said the plan will impact the entire Middle East region and is “really about establishing border and resolving final-status issues,” according to Sky News Arabia.
Kushner, the new book says, was drawn to matters related to Israel during the 2016 campaign. During the early days of the Trump administration he bypassed former Secretary of State Rex Tillerson when he informed the country’s top diplomat he was taking charge of the Middle East peace plan effort.
“Kushner took the Middle East from Tillerson’s portfolio,” Ward said. “‘I want Israel,’ is how he put it, according to a former Tillerson aide … Tillerson, a former Boy Scout, tried to work with Kushner because he thought it was the right thing to do.”
Kushner, who is Jewish, is married to President Trump’s daughter Ivanka Trump.
