US President Donald Trump hosted Jordan’s King Abdullah II at the White House on Tuesday, February 11. According to some journalists, a press conference was not scheduled as part of the meeting between Trump and his Jordanian counterpart, but journalists were surprisingly asked to step in.
Analysts suggest that the US president wanted to put the Jordanian monarch in an awkward position by pushing him to give an answer to his proposals for taking over Gaza and displacing its people in front of media outlets.
King Abdullah’s discomfort was visible while he was trying to get out of the impasse by providing indirect diplomatic answers. When one of the journalists asked Trump: “Why should the King take in the Palestinian people? He’s made it clear he does not want to,” Trump requested the King to answer that question based on previous brief discussions they both had prior to the press conference.
The King apparently avoided giving a direct answer, and alternatively said he will keep the answer until he discusses the issue with Egypt and Arab countries, who should have plans relevant to Gaza.
King Abdullah further explained that his country and other Arab countries were invited by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman to attend a summit in the Saudi capital Riyadh next week, where they are supposed to discuss the matter.
“I think the point is how do we make this work in a way that is good for everybody, obviously, we have to look at the best interest of the United States, of people in the region, especially to my people of Jordan,” King Abdullah said.
“I think one of the things we can do right a way is to take two thousand children that are either cancer children or in a very ill state to Jordan as quickly as possible, and then wait for, I think, the Egyptians to present their plan on how we can work with the President to work on challenges,” he added.
Although the King’s answer was characterized with ambiguity with no clear acceptance or rejection to Trump’s proposals being provided, the US president doubled down his plans to take over Gaza and displace its people in coordination with Jordan, Egypt and other countries.
“The whole thing will come. It is not a complex thing to do, and with the United States being in control of that piece of land, you’re going to have stability in the Middle East for the first time,” Trump said.
When asked about his previous statements about buying Gaza, Trump commented: “We don’t have to buy. We’re going to have Gaza.”
Polarization over King Abdullah’s statement during the press conference
The press conference provoked polarization on social media as some criticized the King for not explicitly saying “No” to Trump’s proposals, while others were defending the King’s stance by saying that his statements were translated inaccurately in a way that led to misperception by the audience.
King Abdullah’s supporters further considered the King’s indirect answers a sort of a statesmanship and diplomatic maneuver. Several hours after the uncomfortable press conference took place, King Abdullah reiterated his rejection of these proposals on his account on X.
“I reiterated Jordan’s steadfast position against the displacement of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank. This is the unified Arab position. Rebuilding Gaza without displacing Palestinians and addressing the dire humanitarian situation should be a priority for all.”
