"We believe that a confederation with Jordan in the current situation is useless and meaningless. After we have the independent state of Palestine within the 1967 borders and our capital in Jerusalem, we can discuss the possibility of such a confederation with Jordan. It is our concept," Nofal said.
The Palestinian ambassador underlined that Abbas' support for a tripartite confederation was merely "a play on words" and should not be taken seriously.
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"President Abbas does not believe that the Palestinian precondition of a two-state solution can be fulfilled in the current situation, therefore, he compared the possibility of establishing an independent state and confederation with Jordan with prospects of establishing a confederation with Israel. Both concepts cannot be implemented in the existing conditions. It is just a play on words, not a serious proposal," Nofal stated.
During the 2016 presidential campaign and after taking office, Trump promised to take steps toward settling the long-standing conflict between Israel and Palestine.
Among these measures was ordering White House Senior Adviser Jared Kushner and Special Representative for International Negotiations Jason Greenblatt to focus on the Middle East conflict, and to work out a plan that could bring peace to the region.
The Middle East settlement process took a hit last December when the United States decided to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. The move was condemned by Arab states and has been rejected by European states. Palestine responded by refusing to allow the United States to remain the primary mediator in peace talks with Israel.
