海角大神

Greenland, the Panama Canal, Canada as the 51st state 鈥� and now a rebuilt and redeveloped Gaza Strip?

President Donald Trump鈥檚 bombshell proposal Tuesday for the United States to 鈥渙wn鈥� a Gaza depopulated of its 2 million Palestinians and make it the 鈥渞iviera of the Middle East鈥� is the latest 鈥� and perhaps most shocking 鈥� example of a new American manifest destiny.

All of President Trump鈥檚 expansionist musings have been received by an incredulous world with varying degrees of suspicion, dismissiveness, and rejection. But the idea of an imperial America taking over a piece of Palestinian homeland 鈥� with American boots on the ground if necessary 鈥� and refashioning it into a glitzy Mediterranean playground is eye-popping.

And not productive, say some Middle East experts.

鈥淭his is the least serious of all of these ideas鈥� of territorial expansion and U.S. ownership, 鈥渂ut in the moment it is the most destructive,鈥� says Aaron David Miller, who has served as a senior adviser on Arab-Israeli issues to both Republican and Democratic administrations.

鈥淚t鈥檚 done to disrupt; it鈥檚 done to keep people off balance,鈥� he adds, 鈥渂ut all it really does is undermine U.S. allies and partners and make it harder to realize [Mr. Trump鈥檚] own goals for the region.鈥�

Confusion over the proposal reigned Wednesday as Trump administration officials walked back the president鈥檚 comments that U.S. troops could be used to secure the area and insisted that any Palestinian displacement would be temporary.

As with Mr. Trump鈥檚 other proposals, the Gaza idea immediately drew speculation that it is another of the president鈥檚 bright shiny objects designed primarily to distract attention from other events and issues.

For example, Mr. Trump laid out his Gaza proposal at a joint press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu 鈥� whose White House visit had been expected to focus on Phase 2 of the Gaza ceasefire and hostage deal and U.S. efforts to keep it on track.

But the ceasefire was relegated to also-ran status as journalists鈥� questions sought to flesh out the president鈥檚 bombshell proposal.

Some note that the Gaza plan was floated in a Washington reeling from a dizzying remaking of the federal government that some experts (and Democratic lawmakers) are calling a coup.

Yet others counter that simply dismissing the brash dealmaking president鈥檚 ideas as whimsy has not panned out well 鈥� as Greenland has learned as Mr. Trump presses his plan to acquire the Arctic island, and as Panama learned from Secretary of State Marco Rubio鈥檚 visit Saturday.

At the press conference, Mr. Netanyahu appeared enthusiastic about Mr. Trump鈥檚 Gaza plan 鈥� and lauded the president鈥檚 disruptive and 鈥渙utside the box鈥� foreign policy approach more generally.

鈥淵ou cut to the chase; you say things others refuse to say,鈥� the beaming Israeli leader said, addressing Mr. Trump. 鈥淎fter the jaws drop, people shake their heads and say, 鈥榊ou know, he鈥檚 right.鈥欌��

But rejection of the idea of the U.S. 鈥渙wning鈥� Gaza was otherwise widespread and swift. Most roundly criticized was the proposal to forcibly relocate Gaza鈥檚 residents to neighboring countries, including Jordan and Egypt.

Within hours, the Saudi Foreign Ministry issued a statement reaffirming the kingdom鈥檚 鈥渦nequivocal rejection of any infringement of the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people,鈥� including 鈥渁ttempts to displace the Palestinian people from their land.鈥�

In Washington, some lawmakers did not mince words.

鈥淭rump鈥檚 proposal to push 2 million Palestinians out of Gaza and take 鈥榦wnership鈥� by force if necessary is simply ethnic cleansing by another name,鈥� said Democratic Sen. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland in a statement. 鈥淐ongress must stand up to this dangerous and reckless scheme.鈥�

Mr. Trump鈥檚 proposal left many observers puzzled as to why Gaza, a complex and multifaceted issue, would prompt the president to abandon some of his core critiques of recent Republican and Democratic administrations. Those include grandiose nation-building projects, and the deployment of U.S. troops to carry out regime change and deliver security.

The president will have an opportunity to publicly address some of these questions when Jordan鈥檚 King Abdullah visits the White House next week.

But the Gaza proposal should be seen in the context of a president who believes fervently in his own power of persuasion, who disdains traditional diplomacy, and whose Mideast envoy is a businessman with no experience in that field.

Mr. Trump says decades of unproductive U.S. diplomacy in the Middle East have failed to deliver peace and prosperity. But outside of his close circle of advisers, few see much promise for his Gaza plan.

鈥淲hat we鈥檙e seeing in operation is the mindset of an opportunistic real estate developer who looks at a destroyed Gaza and its setting and sees a potential for moving everybody out and getting others to pay for a big beautiful new project,鈥� says Dr. Miller, now a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

He notes that the president presented his Gaza proposal reading from notes, not off the top of his head. 鈥淚t鈥檚 clear he鈥檚 been thinking about this for a long time,鈥� he says. 鈥淏ut it鈥檚 a proposal that focuses on Gaza first,鈥� instead of laying the foundation among allies and partners for a viable regional plan.