By Peter Trankner
The fact that Donald Trump has succeeded in establishing a ceasefire in Gaza will also make Vladimir Putin in Russia and Xi Jinping in China alert and take notice. Only someone like him they take seriously.
But it’s also part of the truth that Trump’s peace plan would not have been possible without Israel’s war in Gaza and the prospect of a complete annihilation of Hamas. Several governments from Europe have put pressure on Israel’s democracy in the Gaza war and given the terrorist organization Hamas petting sessions in the form of a de facto meaningless recognition of the phantom state of Palestine. Europe’s position amounts to mere symbolic politics. That is why D. Trump would have deserved the Nobel Prize like no other Western politician.
Among politicians of symbolic politics, there is little understanding of responsible ethical realpolitik. They live naively in a cocoon of words and generalities that feel good when pronounced but have little support in the actions. Barack Obama won the Nobel Prize for his rhetorically varnished -- in a sense cheap remarks, which, of course, came along elegantly, polished and intelligently.
Obama received the prize in 2009, when he just unpacked the last furniture moving into the White House, as advance laurels for his leadership, which then did not bring any foreign policy breakthroughs in two terms. His vision of a world without nuclear weapons and his commitment to international cooperation and diplomacy were good enough for the peace prize.
In retrospect, the pillar saint of beautiful speech -- Obama -- has thoroughly failed, especially in foreign policy. Obama was the one who dropped the “red lines” in Syria, thus emboldening a Bashar al-Assad to use “chemical weapons of poison gas” in Ghouta/Syria in 2013.
And now Donald J. Trump -- the most unloved in the realm of the fair speakers -- has kept his word. Once again, he has proven in his rough, even vulgar way that he is a brilliant strategist and powerful politician. Away from his partly rude campaign rhetoric, Trump has surrounded himself with top professionals during his second term, who were also able to negotiate highly complex tasks -- such as a peace plan for the Gaza Strip -- and were able to enforce them last week.
At a time when the West is coming under increasing pressure, none of the Sunday speeches and ethical self-assurances that have been presented to the point of vomiting can help, but only courageous realpolitik that also takes authoritarian regimes in the Middle East and Russia seriously and meets them on an equal footing.
Trump’s loyalty to Israel was impressive. He never let himself be irritated. The arrogance of Europeans toward the “orange” US president speaks for itself. Once again, Europe plays virtually no role in resolving global conflicts.
And so is the peace breakthrough in the Middle East, also a good moment to hope for peace in Ukraine. If anyone can push Putin to a solution that is also acceptable to Ukraine, it is Donald Trump.
The most beautiful moment after his announcement was the joy in Israel. Especially among the families and friends of the hostages in the Gaza Strip. The interplay between Trump and Netanyahu on the political level, a largely thoughtful Israel Defense Forces, and a committed global civil movement of Jewish and non-Jewish activists (“Bring them home”) has moved a lot.
What is even more promising, however, is how much the Arab world (like Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Egypt) are tired and fed up with the proxies of Iran (Hamas, Hezbollah, Houthis, Harakat al-Nujaba) to be pulled into this never-ending chaos of war.
Our sincere gratitude for this outstanding achievement goes to you, Mr. President.