Trump Envoy Greenblatt Visiting Israel; Will Meet Netanyahu and Gantz

Jason Greenblatt, President Donald Trump’s special envoy for the Middle East, will visit Israel in the wake of the Knesset election.

Channel 13 reports that Greenblatt is expected to meet separately with Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Blue and White Party Chairman Benny Gantz regarding the Trump administration’s peace plan for Israel and the Palestinian Authority, the political portion of which is expected to be released soon.

Greenblatt and White House senior adviser Jared Kushner, as well as the U.S. Ambassador to Israel, David Friedman, have led the effort to develop a peace plan for Israel and the Palestinians and have spent the entire Trump presidency working on the project.

So far, the White House has outlined a $50 billion redevelopment plan for the Palestinians and neighboring countries but has yet to release the proposals for resolving difficult political issues like the status of Jerusalem.

U.S. officials said the political plan is now complete and will be made public when appropriate. Trump had said that he will release it some time after the elections. Whether Trump will release the plan immediately after the elections or  wait until a coalition is formed is unclear.

Last week Greenblatt announced that he plans to resign once the U.S. peace plan is released.

Meanwhile, President Donald Trump on Wednesday addressed the inconclusive election results in Israel. Speaking to reporters in Los Angeles, Trump said that he has not spoken with Netanyahu about an election he described as close, adding, “We’ll see what happens.”

“Our relationship is with Israel,” the president added.

Netanyahu has canceled his annual speech at the U.N. General Assembly next week that might have provided an opportunity for the two leaders to meet.