President Donald Trump has made the pursuit of peace in the Middle East a consistent theme and priority of his first term in office.
As part of that goal, he unveiled a new agreement this week between longtime enemies Israel and Sudan, as reported by Fox News.
“No one thought this was possible”
The announcement came on Friday during a three-way telephone conference call with reporters on hand to witness the historic progress.
“Three months ago, no one thought this was possible,” Trump said, turning his attention to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. “Even Bibi didn’t know if this was possible, right Bibi?”
As for what the development means for Sudan, the president described it as “one of the great days” in that nation’s history. Trump went on to say that nations throughout the region have sought to reach a deal with the involvement of his administration.
“We have many lined up,” he said. “They want to come in, get the deal done.”
Netanyahu expressed optimism, too, stating: “We are cooperating with everyone. Building a better future for all of us.”
“From a rich country to a poor country”
Sudan will be required to pay $335 million in compensation to the victims of terror attacks in 1998 on U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. The attacks were masterminded by Osama bin Laden, who led Al Qaeda while living in Sudan at the time.
Upon payment of those funds, the nation will be removed from America’s list of nations responsible for sponsoring terror.
During the announcement of the peace deal this week, Trump suggested that even Iran “ultimately will become a member of this whole thing,” suggesting an agreement with the hostile nation is potentially in the cards.
“Look, someday I’d love to help Iran get back on track,” the president said. “They’ve gone from a rich country to a poor country in three years.”
If such an outcome is possible, however, Trump made it clear that Iran will have to play by some strict rules: “But they can’t have nuclear weapons. It’s always death to Israel, that’s all they shout. So they can’t have nuclear weapons.”
The post Trump administration announces historic peace deal between Israel and Sudan first appeared on Conservative Institute.
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