Trump Meets with Jordan’s King Abdullah II Amid Gaza Resettlement Plan Push.
On Tuesday, February 11, 2025, President Donald Trump hosted Jordan’s King Abdullah II at the White House, escalating pressure on the Arab nation to take in refugees from Gaza as part of his audacious plan to remake the Middle East. The meeting comes at a perilous moment for the ongoing ceasefire in Gaza, with Hamas accusing Israel of violating the truce and pausing future releases of hostages.
Trump’s controversial plan involves resettling Palestinians from Gaza into neighboring countries, including Jordan, and possibly taking control of Gaza to turn it into “the Riviera of the Middle East”. This proposal has been met with strong opposition from Jordan and other Arab nations, who have firmly rejected the idea. Jordan’s foreign minister, Ayman Safadi, emphasized that his country’s opposition to Trump’s plan was “firm and unwavering”.
During the press conference, Trump suggested that he might withhold U.S. funding from Jordan and Egypt, longtime U.S. allies and top recipients of its foreign aid, as a means of persuading them to accept additional Palestinians from Gaza. “Yeah, maybe. Sure, why not?” Trump told reporters. “If they don’t, I would conceivably withhold aid, yes.”
The meeting also included discussions with top Trump administration officials, such as Secretary of State Marco Rubio, national security adviser Mike Waltz, Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. King Abdullah II is the third foreign leader to hold an in-person meeting with Trump since his Jan. 20 inauguration.
Trump’s plan has raised significant concerns about the long-held goals of a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the potential security risks of welcoming large numbers of refugees into Jordan and Egypt. The international community is closely watching the situation, hoping to avoid a return to violence in Gaza and a further destabilization of the region.
As the ceasefire in Gaza remains fragile, the outcome of Trump’s meeting with King Abdullah II and his push for the Gaza resettlement plan could have far-reaching implications for the Middle East peace process and U.S. relations with its allies in the region.
