Trump signals openness to Israel annexing West Bank while noting "other alternatives" to two-state solution

 President-elect Donald Trump declined to say whether he supports a two-state solution to resolve the Israel-Hamas war and did not say whether he supports Israel annexing the West Bank, a departure from two positions he held during his first administration.

When asked in an interview with Time magazine published on Thursday if he supports a two-state solution between the Israelis and the Palestinians, Trump said he supports “whatever solution we can do to get peace” while noting there are “other alternatives” to a two-state solution, but did not offer specifics on alternative avenues to peace in the region.

More background: Trump’s backing away from a two-state solution contradicts the plan he proposed during his first administration that was intended to serve as a framework to realize a two-state solution, which included plans for Israel to begin removing its settlements in the West Bank. Trump also facilitated the normalization of relations between Israel and Arab countries in the Middle East, known as the Abraham Accords, paving the way for potential diplomacy between the Israelis and the Palestinians.

Trump did not rule out allowing Israel to annex the West Bank, pointing to the aftermath of the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack on Israel as an inflection point in his view on relations between the Israelis and the Palestinians. When asked if he would prevent Israel from annexing the West Bank, Trump said, “We’ll see what happens.”

“I want a long lasting peace, a peace where we don’t have an October 7 in another three years. And there are numerous ways you can do it. You can do it two state, but there are numerous ways it can be done,” he said.

Following the signing of the Abraham Accords, Trump said the normalization agreements were part of a strategy that “prioritized peace in the region over West Bank annexation.” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu temporarily suspended annexation efforts in the wake of the Abraham Accords being signed.