Why Kushner and Witkoff Keep Failing
Foreign Policy · Stephen M. Walt ·
It’s not just a failure of tactics. It’s an entirely mistaken worldview.
It’s not just a failure of tactics. It’s an entirely mistaken worldview.
Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff are unofficial presidential envoys, personally selected by U.S. President Donald Trump to handle critical negotiations over Ukraine, Gaza, and Iran. While it’s safe to say neither was selected after a long and extensive search (Kushner is Trump’s son-in-law and Witkoff is a longtime friend and golfing buddy), let’s be charitable and assume that they have been genuinely trying to reach agreements that would advance U.S. interests. The question is: Why have they accomplished so little?
Look at the record: The supposed peace deal over Gaza is a sham, as Israel continues to bomb Gaza with impunity, expand its territorial control there, and limit relief aid while tolerating (if not actively helping) Israeli settlers’ violent campaign against Palestinians in the West Bank. Genuine peace may not have been their real objective, however, as Kushner and Witkoff are both ardent Israel supporters who were even less likely to put serious pressure on Israel than former U.S. President Joe Biden (which is saying something). In this view, the Gaza agreement was a Potemkin peace deal whose main goal was to free Israeli hostages held by Hamas and get the conflict off the front pages while tying Israel’s hands as little as possible. If so, then one might concede that they accomplished their objective. But if the goal was peace, they failed.
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