Palestinians have a list of demands for Biden that aim to reverse President Trump’s pro-Israel policies.
“We have already contacted Biden’s people to inform them of our demands. We had a positive dialogue with senior officials who are close to Biden,” said a Palestinian official to The Jerusalem Post.
The demands include revoking the United States’ recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, reversing the historical announcement made by President Trump in late 2017.
The Palestinians will push Biden to move the U.S. Consulate in Israel to east Jerusalem and to once again provide financial aid to the Palestinian Authority and the UN Relief and Work Agency.
This aid was cut by the Trump administration after the White House announced a thorough review of U.S. assistance to the Palestinian Authority in Gaza and the West Bank to “ensure these funds are spent in accordance with U.S. national interests.”
The Palestinians also wish to reinstate relations between the U.S. and the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO).
In October, the Trump administration declared that Israel can be listed as the place of birth for U.S. citizens, which Palestinians will demand to be reversed as well as removing Israel’s recently earned right to label products “made in Israel.”
Under a Biden administration, Palestinians anticipate a shift in Middle Eastern alliances and a separation from the “Deal of the Century,” or Trump’s Middle East peace plan, which would allow for a revival of the two-state solution.
Although Palestinian officials recognize it is unlikely that all these demands will be met, they express hope that a Biden administration will relent on most accounts.
“The new administration believes in the two-states solution […] the new administration believes that the Deal of the Century should be off the table. They talk about reversing most – if not all these actions. And this is really for us an indication that the new administration is different. And that’s why we’re ready to engage,” Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki said at a press conference last week.
The Palestinian Authority has been boycotting the Trump administration since 2017 amidst strengthening relations between the U.S. and Israel.
