|
February 7, 2025
Dutton lauds 'big thinker' Trump but won't back Gaza plan
Peter Dutton has praised Donald Trump as "big thinker and a deal maker", but stopped short of endorsing the US President's plan to take over and own Gaza.
Mr Trump's suggestion on Wednesday that the Gaza Strip be redeveloped into the "Riviera of the Middle East" has been widely slammed, including by European and Middle Eastern nations.
Mr Dutton said Mr Trump hadn't become President for a second time "by being anything other than shrewd".
"I think a lot of people . . . are coming to grips with it," Mr Dutton told 2GB radio.
"There's a desire for peace here from every reasonable person and hopefully it can be achieved."
The 78-year-old President also warned that Palestinian people would need to be "relocated to other countries" for his plan to work and left open the possibility of sending US troops to realise his vision.
The White House has walked back some of his comments, saying Palestinians would be temporarily relocated rather than permanently displaced, and that no decision had been made about sending in troops.
Several Middle East governments condemned the policy shift, warning an influx of Palestinians to nearby countries would destabilise the region.
But Mr Dutton said he thought Mr Trump wanted "the region to step up".
"I think he's serious about making sure that there's not a threat to Israel and we can't have another repeat of October 7 because it was the biggest attack on the Jewish people since the Holocaust," he said, But the Opposition Leader later clarified he supported a two-State solution, a position reaffirmed by shadow home affairs minister James Paterson, who said the Coalition backed a deal "negotiated between the parties in Israel and Palestine".
"We would have to understand more about it (Mr Trump's plan), but it hasn't changed our longstanding view," he said.
"I think we do have to recognise the status quo has failed.
It's failed for Israelis, it's failed for Palestinians, and Hamas' continued role in Gaza is an enormous obstacle to a twostate solution and peace in the region."
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese also reiterated his support for a two-state solution. "Australia's position is the right of both Israelis and Palestinians to live in peace and security in their own states and that remains our position," he said.
Jewish groups in Australia rejected Mr Trump's proposal to relocate Palestinian residents.
"The question of whether some Gazans choose to remain in the territory . . . temporarily relocate or are permanently absorbed by neighbouring states is ultimately a decision for those affected, most of all, Gaza's civilian population," Executive Council of Australian Jewry president Daniel Aghion said.
Australia Palestine Advocacy Network president Nasser Mashni said Palestine was not a bargaining chip and no one, including Mr Trump, had the right to dictate its future.
