Former US Secretary of State John Kerry urged Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to propose a “reasonable” peace plan, vowing to exert efforts to garner international support for it.
His comments came during a London discussion about the Middle East peace process with Hussein Agha, a Lebanese academic who is close to Abbas, reported the Israeli newspaper Ma'ariv.
Kerry, 74, said his advanced age would not hinder him from running for the presidency once again, urging Agha to tell Abbas to “stay strong” and “play for time” while President Donald Trump is in office. It was reported that Kerry said that within a year there was a good chance that Trump would not be in the White House.
The former Secretary of State did not rule out to Agha the possibility of running for president in 2020.
He offered his help to the Palestinians in an effort to advance the peace process and recommended that Abbas present his own peace plan.
“Maybe it is time for the Palestinians to define their peace principles and present a positive plan,” Kerry suggested.
The US official pledged to employ his connections in the international community in order to garner support for this plan, reported Ma'ariv.
In addition, Kerry advised Abbas, through Agha, to stop criticizing the US and its administration and to instead only focus on Trump because he is the sole person responsible for the current situation, said the Israeli newspaper.
He also spoke about how senior US officials, intelligence and security agencies were disappointed in the way Trump is leading the country.
Kerry remarked that overcoming this stage requires patience and perseverance.
