Now that U.S. President Donald Trump's historic visit to Israel and the Palestinian territories has come to an end, we can see that even the magician from the White House, who stunned the United States and the world six months ago with his unexpected, improbable election victory, is limited in what he can do and the power he can wield, certainly when it comes to the Middle East and the conflict between the Israelis and Palestinians. Perhaps it was unrealistic from the start to expect a bloody conflict over a century old to be resolved during a two-day visit. And yet, the visit was momentous and transformative, and valuable. The significance in visiting Israel, incidentally, similar to the situation in Saudi Arabia, is in the turnabout it signaled for America's regional status and for the way its allies, but also its enemies in the Middle East, relate to it. The fact that Trump chose to visit the Middle East and Israel of all places as the destination for his first trip abroad sends a clear message that contrary to his predecessor, Barack Obama, Trump does not intend to turn his back and disengage from the region and Washington's allies there. In the wake of the visit, which, as a reminder, came only a month after the U.S. missile strike on a Syrian military base, it is now evident that the U.S. is determined to play a role in every conflict zone in the Middle East: in Syria (Assad, beware!), the Persian Gulf in a faceoff with Iran, as well as trying to advance the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. In the meantime, this is only a declaration of intent using strong and courageous words (which are also important), but no action as of yet. Any steps taken must stem from a clear plan of strategic action, which is still forthcoming. As expected, Trump concluded his trip to Israel with a moving speech in which he reiterated his commitment to the Jewish state and its people, and to pushing peace between it and its neighbors forward. The speech was preceded by Trump's meeting with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, during which the American president repeated and re-emphasized that fighting terror must be the basis of any effort to promote a peace process in the region, clearly hinting at the warm embrace the Palestinian Authority gives to its people who murder Israelis. He also affirmed that "peace can never take root in an environment where violence is tolerated, funded and even rewarded." Trump, therefore, did his part, but he is returning home and we are still here facing the challenges and threats. These require a determined plan of action, sometimes patience, and above all else our partners on the ground to join the effort and help lead the vision laid out by Trump, a vision of partnership and prosperity in the shadow of an uncompromising, no-holds-barred war on terror and on behalf of peace.
