WASHINGTON (AP) 鈥 President Donald Trump hosted Jordan鈥檚 King Abdullah II at the White House on Tuesday and renewed his insistence that Gaza could be emptied of all residents, controlled by the U.S. and redeveloped as a tourist area 鈥 a plan that could likely only work if the Arab nation agrees to accept more refugees.
Trump and Abdullah met in the Oval Office, where the president suggested he wouldn't withhold U.S. aid to Jordan or other Arab nations like Egypt if they don't agree to dramatically increase the number of people from Gaza they take in.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 have to threaten that. I do believe we鈥檙e above that," Trump said. That contradicted the Republican president previously suggesting that holding back aid from Washington was a possibility.
Abdullah was asked repeatedly about Trump's audacious plan to remake the Middle East, but didn't make substantive comments on it, nor the idea that his country could accept large numbers of new refugees from Gaza.
鈥淚 finally see somebody that can take us across the finish line to bring stability, peace and prosperity to all of us in the region,鈥 the king said in his statement at the top of the meeting.
In comments to reporters in the Oval Office, Trump also repeated suggestions that the U.S. could come to control Gaza, but he said that it wouldn't require committing American funds. He also said that would be possible, 鈥淯nder the U.S. authority,鈥 without elaborating what that actually was.
鈥淲e鈥檙e not going to buy anything. We鈥檙e going to have it," Trump said of U.S. control in Gaza. He suggested that the redeveloped area could have new hotels, office buildings and houses, "and we鈥檒l make it exciting.鈥
鈥淚 can tell you about real estate. They鈥檙e going to be in love with it,鈥 Trump, who built a New York real estate empire that catapulted him to fame, said of Gaza's residents, while also insisting that he personally would not be involved in development.
Additionally, Trump used the meeting to renew his suggestions that could be canceled if Hamas doesn't release all of the remaining hostages it is holding by midday on Saturday. Trump first made that suggestion on Monday, though he insisted then that the ultimate decision lies with Israel.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 think they鈥檙e going to make the deadline, personally," Trump said of Hamas. "They want to play tough guy. We鈥檒l see how tough they are.鈥
The king's visit is happening at a perilous moment for the ongoing ceasefire in Gaza. Hamas is accusing Israel of violating the truce and said it is captured in its Oct. 7, 2023, attack.
Trump, meanwhile, has repeatedly proposed and turn it into 鈥渢he Riviera of the Middle East,鈥 with Palestinians in the war-torn territory pushed into neighboring nations with no right of return.
Trump's Tuesday comments contradicted his Monday suggestions that, if necessary, he would withhold U.S. funding from Jordan and Egypt 鈥 longtime U.S. allies and among the top recipients of its foreign aid 鈥 as a means of persuading them to accept additional Palestinians from Gaza.
Jordan is home to more than 2 million Palestinians and, along with other Arab states, has flatly rejected Trump's plan to relocate civilians from Gaza. Jordan鈥檚 foreign minister, Ayman Safadi, said last week that his country鈥檚 opposition to Trump鈥檚 idea was 鈥渇irm and unwavering.鈥
Besides concerns about jeopardizing the long-held goals of a two-state solution to the Israel-Palestinian conflict, Egypt and Jordan have privately raised security concerns about welcoming large numbers of additional refugees into their countries even temporarily.
The king is also meeting with top Trump administration officials during his visit, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, national security adviser Mike Waltz, Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, as well as a bipartisan group of lawmakers on Capitol Hill.
He is the third foreign leader to hold an in-person meeting with Trump since his Jan. 20 inauguration.
Trump announced his ideas for resettling Palestinians from Gaza and taking ownership of the territory for the U.S. during a press conference last week with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The president initially to help secure Gaza but at the same time insisted no U.S. funds would go to pay for the reconstruction of the territory, raising fundamental questions about the nature of his plan.
After Trump鈥檚 initial comments, that Trump only wanted Palestinians relocated from Gaza 鈥渢emporarily鈥 and sought an 鈥渋nterim鈥 period to allow for debris removal, the disposal of unexploded ordnance and reconstruction.
But asked in an interview with Fox News鈥 Bret Baier that aired Monday if Palestinians in Gaza would have a right to return to the territory under his plan, he replied, 鈥淣o, they wouldn鈥檛.鈥
