MOSCOW, March 25. /TASS/. US President Donald Trump's idea of turning the Gaza Strip into a Middle Eastern Riviera is still a dream, but one Israel can get behind, said Acting Israeli Ambassador to Russia Alexander Ben Zvi.
"In this case, of course, it's a dream. But any real project starts with a dream," he told TASS in an interview.
According to the diplomat, "there is a vision of what it might look like, and we must strive for this." "This is his plan. And he will make every effort to fulfill it. <...> The Riviera is still at the dream stage."
According to Zvi, the US president's plan "certainly coincides with Israel's vision." "We said during the previous conflicts that Gaza could turn into Singapore. There was such an idea," he recalled.
The diplomat wondered when the plans might become reality. "When they finally realize that Israel is a reality, that it cannot be destroyed," he believes. "Hamas has huge resources, it is not a poor organization. Their leaders, who are based in Qatar, have billions of dollars. Where did these billions suddenly come from? If all the money they receive as aid from all over the world was directed to the construction of housing, hospitals, schools, and economic development, Gaza could actually turn into such an area," Zvi believes. He added that the region "has a coast and the possibility to build hotels," "so there are opportunities." "They have to make a decision that they want this," the acting ambassador said.
In February, Trump said he was considering long-term ownership of the Gaza Strip to turn this enclave into a Middle Eastern Riviera. He said he was ready to send US troops there and called for the resettlement of Palestinians from Gaza to the neighboring Egypt and Jordan. Both the Palestinian authorities and many other countries rejected the relocation idea. According to Russian Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov, Trump's proposals were noticed in the Kremlin, but Moscow is also familiar with the position of Egypt and Jordan, which rejected the initiative.