The German Foreign Policy Experts Question the Plans of US President Donald Trump for the Gaza Strip.
The proposal by Trump is adventurous and will get lost in the sand, said Nils Schmid, the foreign policy spokesperson of the SPD faction, to the Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland. A negotiation solution between Israel and the Palestinians is thus not achievable. The proposal is not only unacceptable for the Palestinians, but also contradicts international law, as it would involve the displacement of two million people. And the Arab states will continue to advocate for a two-state solution. This goal should also be pursued by Trump, so that the situation in the Middle East can be de-escalated.
Economic development is an important element for stabilizing Gaza, but it requires a state framework, not just building plans, Schmid criticized the handling of the issue by Trump, saying that his proposal corresponds not to the traditional mediating role of a US President, but rather to that of a real estate developer, who mixes private business interests with his political office.
The Vice-Chairman of the CDU faction, Johann Wadephul, valued the announcement by Trump as a positive signal. It is good that the USA takes responsibility, focuses on the future of the Gaza Strip and already commits to a long-term reconstruction engagement, he said to the Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland. The need, including the financial, is significant and can only be supported by the international community as a whole, including the world’s largest economy. Besides the reconstruction measures, a genuine political solution is important. The current status of Gaza cannot be maintained. The goal remains a two-state solution.
Sahra Wagenknecht, the party chair of the Bündnis Sahra Wagenknecht, sharply rejected the Gaza plan of Trump, saying that his plans to displace the Palestinians from the Gaza Strip and transform it into an American investment project are inhuman and deeply dehumanizing, to the Welt.
Wagenknecht considers the approach of the US President a massive mistake. Whoever still sees a peacemaker in this man is truly not to be helped, she said. First, Canada, Greenland and the Panama Canal, then threats against Iran and now these Gaza plans: Trump threatens the world with even greater recklessness than the US policy of the last years has already done.
It is necessary to have a clear rejection of the plans by the federal government, Wagenknecht said. Does our human rights foreign minister now also demand economic sanctions because a country assumes the right to move borders in a way that is contrary to international law, she asked, referring to Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock (Greens); the federal government imposed sanctions on Russia after its invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Wagenknecht also said: And what does the AfD say, which has been courted by Musk and Trump in the election campaign?
Wagenknecht demanded a turnaround in German foreign policy away from the United States. We need a German policy that no longer subordinates itself to US interests, but instead proudly represents our country and engages in dialogue, diplomatic conflict resolution and peace, she said.