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Palestinian president Abbas ‘ready to work’ with Trump on two-state solution

Mahmoud Abbas calls for security and stability in the Middle East in a message to the US president

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02:51

Donald Trump inaugurated as 47th president of the United States

Donald Trump inaugurated as 47th president of the United States

Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas congratulated US President Donald Trump on his inauguration on Monday and said he was ready to work for peace with Israel based on a two-state solution.

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“We are ready to work with you to achieve peace during your term, based on a two-state solution,” Abbas said in a statement published by the official Wafa news agency.

Abbas said it would mean “the State of Palestine and the State of Israel living side-by-side in security and peace, ensuring security and stability in our region and the world”.

In his first presidential term, from 2017 to 2021, Trump’s administration put together a peace proposal which would have involved Israel annexing much of the occupied West Bank while handing over some territory to a future Palestinian state in return.

The Palestinians strongly rejected the proposal, and Israel abandoned its annexation plans when Gulf Arab states normalised ties with it under US-brokered agreements.

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Trump has taken credit for securing a ceasefire deal in the Israel-Gaza war, with his Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff taking part in negotiations that finally produced an agreement that came into effect on Sunday.
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