Obama vs. Trump - Different Approaches to the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: Win-Win vs. Win-Lose Methods and Pure Mediation vs. Power Mediation

Abstract

This research focuses on the two most recent peace initiatives by U.S. presidents to solve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The examination of Obama’s “Peace Vision” and Trump’s “Peace to Prosperity” initiatives concern differences and similarities in vision and actions addressing the conflict’s key issues, such as land and borders, Jerusalem, refugees, Jewish settlements in the West Bank, and security arrangements. The findings highlight the many differences between the two plans in detail and attitude, such as the view of the Trump administration on the legality of the Jewish settlements in the West Bank and other issues where the Trump administration heavily favored Israel interests over Palestinians. However, a few similarities emerged in protecting the Israeli demands, such as regarding the Palestinian refugees and security arrangements. When examining conflict resolution methods and third-party intervention approaches, we conclude that Trump used the “Power Mediation” method and the “Win-Lose” approach for third-party intervention. This is conversely to Obama, who used the “Pure Mediation” method and the “Win-Win” approach.