>>> AND OUR THOUGHTS ARE WITH
THE PRESIDENT THIS MORNING AND
HIS FAMILY, FOLLOWING THE
PASSING OF PRESIDENT TRUMP’S
YOUNGER BROTHER, ROBERT TRUMP
YESTERDAY.
HE WAS 71 YEARS OLD.
PRESIDENT TRUMP VISITED HIM IN A
NEW YORK CITY HOSPITAL ON FRIDAY
, BEFORE TRAVELING TO BEDM
INSTER, NEW JERSEY FOR AN
EVENT.
HIS SENIOR ADVISOR AND
SON-IN-LAW JARED KUSHNER IS
THERE WITH HIM AND HE JOINS ME
NOW.
OUR CONDOLENCES TO YOU AND
FAMILY.
I WANT TO DISCUSS THIS WEEKS
HISTORIC PEACE DEAL BETWEEN
ISRAEL AND THE UAE, BUT FIRST
HOW ARE YOU DOING, HOW IS THE
PRESIDENT DOING?
>> THANK YOU VERY MUCH, MARIA.
THE PRESIDENT IS DOING WELL.
I WAS WITH HIM LAST NIGHT AND
THE FAMILY WHEN HE GOT THE
UNFORTUNATE NEWS HE LOVED
HIS BROTHER VERY MUCH.
IT’S OBVIOUSLY A VERY DIFFICULT
TIME FOR HIM IN THAT REGARD BUT
AGAIN HE LOVED HIS BROTHER, HE
WAS HAPPY, GOT A CHANCE TO SEE
HIM AND THEY HAD A GREAT
RELATIONSHIP AND MANY GOOD
MEMORIES TOGETHER SO HOPEFULLY
HE’LL TIN AUTO YOU TO DO GREAT
THINGS AND MAKE HIS BROTHER
PROUD.
MARIA: I WANT TO TALK ABOUT THIS
HISTORIC PEACE DEAL BETWEEN
ISRAEL AND THE UAE, WHICH OF
COURSE YOU WERE SO CRITICAL IN
PUTTING TOGETHER.
TELL ME THE MOST IMPORTANT PARTS
OF THIS DEAL, AS YOU SEE IT
TODAY.
>> SO THIS DEAL IS REALLY THE
CULMINATION OF THREE AND A
HALF YEARS OF INCREDIBLE
DIPLOMACY BY PRESIDENT TRUMP.
PRESIDENT TRUMP STARTED HIS
ADMINISTRATION WITH HIS FIRST
FOREIGN TRIP, WHERE HE ADDRESSED
THE 54 MUSLIM NATIONS AND THEN
WENT TO ISRAEL WHEN HE MET WITH
THE JEWISH LEADERS AND WENT TO
ROME WHERE HE MET WITH THE POPE
AND OTHER LEADERS, AND SO
PRESIDENT TRUMP HAS SET OUT A
COURSE TO REALLY CHANGE THE
MIDDLE EAST AND TO TRY TO
BRING MORE PEACE TO THE WORLD.
THIS WAS A GREAT CULMINATION OF
IT AND THERE’S A LOT OF STEPS
ALONG THE WAY.
WE HOSTED A CONFERENCE WHERE WE
BROUGHT THE MIDDLE EAST CLOSER
TOGETHER.
WE HOSTED A CONFERENCE IN
BAHRAIN WHERE WE BROUGHT
EVERYONE TOGETHER AND THE
PRESIDENT’S STEPS WHICH WERE
WHITELY CRITICIZED IN THE
FOREIGN POLICY WORLD LIKE
MOVING THE EMBASSY TO JERUSALEM
WAS A VERY CRITICAL STEP.
THAT SHOWED PEOPLE THAT NUMBER
ONE PRESIDENT TRUMP UNLIKE PAST
POLITICIANS KEEPS HIS PROM
PROMISES AND THAT’S STRENGTH AND
COURAGE AND CONVICTION ALLOWED
HIM TO BUILD VERY STRONG
RELATIONSHIPS WITH OUR REGIONAL
ALLIES THAT HAD PREVIOUSLY BEEN
FORSAKEN AND THAT CONFIDENCE
THEY HAD IN HIM ALLOWED HIM TO
TAKE THIS HISTORIC STEP FORWARD
AND ALSO ONE OF THE OTHER
CRITICAL STEPS ALONG THE WAY WAS
PRESIDENT TRUMP GETTING OUT OF
THE DISASTROUS IRAN DEAL.
THAT DEAL SENT $150 BILLION TO
THE LARGEST STATE SPONSOR OF
TERRORISM, ONE OF THE WORST
DEALS PERHAPS IN HISTORY AND
PRESIDENT TRUMP’S LEADERSHIP IS
GREATLY CONSTRAINED THE REACH OF
A BIG MENACE IN THE REGION.
MARIA: YEAH I THINK YOU MAKE A
LOT OF GOOD POINTS AND ALL OF
THESE EFFORTS FOR THE LAST THREE
AND A HALF YEARS HAVE YIELDED
TRUE IMPACT, AND SUCCESS.
I FEEL LIKE THE IDEA OF PEACE IN
THE MIDDLE EAST HAS BEEN GOING
ON DECADES, BUT THERE WAS A
RELATIONSHIP IN PLACE BETWEEN
YOU AND BENJAMIN NETANYAHU AND
THE PRESIDENT.
WAS THAT REALLY THE TRIGGER THAT
ALLOWED THE UNITED ARAB EMIRATE
AND ITS LEADERSHIP IN ABU DHABI
TO SAY NOW IS THE TIME TO
ACTUALLY LISTEN AND TO TRY TO
COME TO THE MIDDLE?
I THINK NETANYAHU GIVING A
SETTLEMENT AND A PAUSE TO THE
WEST BANK IS CRITICAL.
TELL ME HOW YOUR PERSONAL
RELATIONSHIP, THE PRESIDENT’S
RELATIONSHIPS REALLY GOT THIS
DONE.
>> RIGHT SO RELATIONSHIPS ARE
ONE THING AND OBVIOUSLY, YOU
HAVE TO BE ABLE TO HAVE TRUST
AND KNOW THAT YOU CAN HAVE FREE
WILLING DISCUSSIONS WHERE YOU
DIDN’T COME TO THE REGION TO
LECTURE PEOPLE, WE CAME TO
LISTEN TO PEOPLE AND THEN TO
UNDERSTAND WHAT WERE THEIR BEST
INTERESTS AND THEN FIND
COMMONALITY.
WHEN PRESIDENT TRUMP MOVED THE
EMBASSY TO JERUSALEM A LOT
OF PEOPLE CRITICIZED AND SAYS
WELL HE DIDN’T ASK FOR ANYTHING
IN RETURN AND PRESIDENT TRUMP’S
POINT OF VIEW ON THAT WAS THAT
FIRST OF ALL, YOU DON’T HAVE TO
GET SOMETHING FOR KEEPING YOUR
PROMISE.
YOU SHOULDN’T BE GETTING
SOMETHING FOR DOING THE RIGHT
THING.
YOU SHOULD JUST DO THE RIGHT
THING BUT WHAT HE GOT OUT OF
THAT WHICH VERY FEW FOREIGN
POLICY EXPERTS SAW WAS HE GOT
THE TRUST OF THE ISRAELI PEOPLE
AND THE TRUST OF ISRAEL.
IT SHOWED HE WAS DOING THINGS
FOR THE RIGHT REASONS AND THAT
TRUST HAS ENABLED HIM TO GET
ISRAEL TO MAKE SOME TOUGHER
DECISIONS THAT THEY WOULDN’T
HAVE MADE OTHERWISE, PERHAPS
UNDER A DIFFERENT ADMINISTRATION
, AND OBVIOUSLY,
WITH THE UNITED ARAB EMIRATE,
THEY FELT VERY BETRAYED BY
AMERICA, WITH THE PAST
ADMINISTRATION.
THE IRAN DEAL WAS A TERRIBLE
BETRAYAL OF THE REGION AND
AMERICAN LEADERSHIP IN THE
REGION HAD REALLY PULLED
BACK.
IF YOU THINK ABOUT AMERICA’S
FOREIGN POLICY IN THE MIDDLE
EAST PREVIOUSLY IT WAS ABOUT
ENERGY, AND UNDER PRESIDENT
TRUMP’S LEADERSHIP, AMERICA’S
NOW ENERGY-INDEPENDENT AS A
COUNTRY SO THAT’S GREATLY
REDUCED OUR DEPENDENCE ON THE
MIDDLE EAST WHICH IS
CRITICAL.
AMERICANS DON’T WANT TO HAVE TOO
MUCH WAR THERE.
IN THE PAST ADMINISTRATIONS HAVE
LOST, YOU KNOW, TRILLIONS OF
DOLLARS, AND TOO MANY SOLDIERS
IN THE MIDDLE EAST AND BRINGING
PEOPLE TOGETHER AND CREATING
PEACE LIKE PRESIDENT TRUMP WAS
ABLE TO DO HERE, GREATLY REDUCES
OUR NEED TO HAVE TROOPS IN THE
REGION AND THEN FINALLY, A
BIG THREAT TO US AND TO THE
WHOLE REGION IS RADICAL EXTREM
ISM AND PRESIDENT TRUMP
AND HIS FIRST TRIP TO SAUDI
ARABIA, THE CUSTODIAN OF THE TWO
HOLY SITES WAS ABLE TO CREATE
AGREEMENTS AMONGST THE ARAB
WORLD TO DO A COUNTER-TERROR
FINANCE CENTER WHERE NOW OVER
THE LAST THREE AND A HALF YEARS
WE’VE SEEN A SIGNIFICANTLY LESS
AMOUNT OF MONEY GOING TO TERROR
ORGANIZATIONS AND THEN A COUNTER
EXTREMISM CENTER WHERE WE’RE
FIGHTING THE LONG TERM ONLINE
BATTLE AGAINST EXTREMISM ONLINE.
PRESIDENT TRUMP ALSO WAS ABLE TO
DESTROY THE TERRITORIAL
CALIPHATE OF ISIS AND KILL THEIR
LEADER AND THAT ALSO IS CREATES
A LOT MORE STABILITY IN THE
REGION, SO IT’S REALLY BEEN
THROUGH HIS ACTIONS THAT HE’S
EARNED THE TRUST NOT JUST OF
THESE TWO LEADERS BUT OF
EVERYONE ELSE IN THE REGION AND
PEOPLE KNOW THAT THEY MAY NOT
ALWAYS LIKE EVERY DECISION HE
TAKES, BUT HE’S GOING TO DO IT
FROM A POSITION OF STRENGTH AND
HE’S THE FIRST LEADER WHOSE
REALLY MOVED PEACE A UNDERCUT
ROSENSTEIN IN THE REGION AND
OBVIOUSLY THIS IS A FIRST PEACE
AGREEMENT IN THE LAST 26 YEARS
SO IT’S AN AMAZING BREAKTHROUGH
AND ACCOMPLISHMENT THAT ONLY
PRESIDENT TRUMP, THE DEAL MAKER
PRESIDENT COULD HAVE DONE.
MARIA: WELL YOU MENTIONED ALL OF
THE STRATEGIES THAT THE UNITED
STATES HAS HAD IN THE MIDDLE
EAST FOR YEARS AND IT HAS ENERGY
, YOU’VE GOT THIS MILITARY
HUGE MILITARY FOOTPRINT BASED ON
ALL OF THE WARS THAT WE’VE HAD
AND THEN OF COURSE THE BIGGEST
THREAT IS EXTREMISM.
THIS SORT OF SPEAKS TO ALL OF
THAT BUT I WANT TO ASK YOU WHAT
THIS MEANS GOING FORWARD,
BECAUSE IN AN INTERVIEW LAST
WEEK, YOU SUGGESTED THAT THIS IS
THE BEGINNING OF SOMETHING
BROADER, SO NUMBER ONE IS WAS MB
S, THE HEAD OF SAUDI
ARABIA CONSULTED ON THIS?
WOULD THE SAUDIS BE NEXT IN
TERMS OF RECOGNIZING ISRAEL AND
WHAT ELSE DO YOU SEE HAPPENING
AS A RESULT OF THIS THROUGHOUT
THE MIDDLE EAST?
>> SO PART OF THE TRUST THAT
WE’VE BUILT WITH ALL THE LEADERS
IS THAT WE DON’T DISCLOSE
PUBLICLY A LOT OF THE DISCUSSION
S THAT HAPPEN
PRIVATELY.
PEOPLE ARE ACTUALLY QUITE AMAZED
THAT THIS DEAL DIDN’T LEAK OUT,
REALLY THE NEWS BROKE WITH THE
PRESIDENT’S TWEET AND THAT’S
A GREAT THING.
THIS REALLY IS A PARADIGM SHIFT
AND WHAT PRESIDENT TRUMP HAS
TRIED TO DO FOR THE LAST THREE
YEARS IS THAT HE RECOGNIZED THAT
A LOT OF THE APPROACHES TAKEN IN
THE MIDDLE EAST IN THE PREVIOUS
ADMINISTRATIONS JUST DIDN’T WORK
AND WEREN’T SERVING AMERICA’S
INTEREST.
PRESIDENT TRUMP IS AN AMERICAN
FIRST PRESIDENT.
HE ALWAYS IS PUTTING THE
INTERESTS OF AMERICANS FIRST
, AND HE TRIED TO TAKE AN
AMERICA-FIRST APPROACH HERE
AND WHAT HE DID WAS HE TRIED TO
ALIGN THE DIFFERENT COUNTRIES IN
THE REGION AROUND THEIR COMMON
INTEREST AS OPPOSED TO FOCUSING
ON HISTORIC GRIEVANCES, AND
AGAIN, OVER THE LAST THREE AND A
HALF YEARS, PEOPLE WERE SAYING
THAT PRESIDENT TRUMP’S ACTIONS
WOULD LEAD TO ANOTHER WORLD WAR,
THAT THEY WOULDN’T BE SUCCESSFUL
, AND IT WAS BECAUSE
HE WAS DOING POLICIES THAT WERE
BASED ON COMMON SENSE, NOT BASED
ON TRADITIONAL DIPLOMATIC
APPROACHES AND OBVIOUSLY, IT’S
AN AMAZING FRUIT THAT’S BEEN
BORN FROM THOSE EFFORTS BUT I
WILL SAY THAT GOING FORWARD THIS
SHOWS PEOPLE THAT THINGS
ARE POSSIBLE.
I BELIEVE THAT MANY PEOPLE HAD
GROWN HOPELESS IN THE MIDDLE
EAST, BECAUSE THEY’VE JUST SEEN
YEARS AND YEARS OF FAILURE AND
THEY DIDN’T BELIEVE THINGS COULD
CHANGE, AND SO THE PROBLEMS
BECAME VERY FIXED BUT ONE BY ONE
PIECE BY PIECE PRESIDENT TRUMP
SLAUGHTERED THE SACRED COWS AND
USED BLUNT FORCE INSTRUMENTS BUT
TAKEN OUT A LOT OF THE PROBLEMS
THAT EXISTED AND HELD THE REGION
BACK FOR YEARS AND IF YOU LOOK
AT THE YOUNGER GENERATION
WHETHER ISRAELI OR SAUDI THEY
WANT TO HAVE BETTER LIVES IN
ORDER TO DO THAT THEY NEED TO
HAVE A SECURE ENVIRONMENT AND BE
FREE OF TERROR FREE OF THE
RADICALIZERS AND HAVE
ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITIES THAT THEY
CAN FEEL LIKE THEIR CHILDREN CAN
HAVE A BETTER LIFE THAN THEY
HAVE.
MARIA: SO DOES THIS , SHOULD WE
BELIEVE THAT THIS COULD BE THE
BEGINNING OF AN AFRONT OR A
CONTINUATION OF A FRONT AGAINST
IRAN AT SOME POINT PERHAPS
HEZBOLLAH BECOMES LESS IMPORTANT
AND NOT RUNNING THINGS IN THAT
PART OF THE WORLD, AND WHAT
ABOUT CHINA, BECAUSE YOU REALLY
HAVE BEEN CRITICAL TO THE
PRESIDENT’S FOREIGN POLICY IN A
NUMBER OF AREAS.
YOU HELPED LEAD IN TERMS OF THE
BIGGEST TRADE DEAL EVER,
MEXICO AND CANADA.
YOU WERE BEHIND THE DEAL WITH
CHINA, PHASE I, YOU DID AN OPEC
DEAL.
YOU ALSO DID CRIMINAL JUSTICE
REFORM.
OF COURSE YOU ALSO DID
LEADERSHIP ON THE WALL.
WHERE ARE WE ON THAT AND I KNOW
THAT CHINA HAS A LOT OF BUSINESS
WITH THE UAE.
THE UAE SELLS ALMOST ALL OF ITS
OIL TO CHINA.
ARE WE GOING TO GET TO A
POSITION WHERE THEY HAVE TO
CHOOSE, THE U.S. OR CHINA,
GIVEN THE FACT THAT THERE’S SUCH
TENSION BETWEEN THE TWO
COUNTRIES NOW.
I KNOW THERE’S A LOT THERE BUT
GIVE US YOUR SENSE ON THE IMPACT
ON IRAN AND CHINA, AND THEN
LET’S END OFF WITH THE WALL.
BECAUSE I KNOW OUR AUDIENCE IS
INTERESTED IN HEARING WHERE WE
ARE ON THAT.
>> ABSOLUTELY.
SO I WOULD SAY THAT BEFORE
PRESIDENT TRUMP CAME IN, THE
DIRECTION WAS VERY CLEAR.
MOST OF THE COUNTRIES IN THE
MIDDLE EAST WERE HEADING
TOWARDS CHINA, BECAUSE AMERICA
HAD TOTALLY GIVEN UP ITS
LEADERSHIP ROLE IN THE REGION
AND HAD BETRAYED ALL OF ITS
ALLIES BY DOING THE DANGEROUS
IRAN DEAL THAT GAVE THEM A GLIDE
PATH TO A NUCLEAR WEAPON AND
EMPOWERED THEM TO CAUSE MORE IN
STABILITY THROUGHOUT THE
REGION.
THIS IS A BIG SIGN THAT PEOPLE
IN THE REGION WANT TO BE WITH
AMERICA LONG TERM.
WE JUST NEED TO BE CONSISTENT
AND STRONG LEADER IN TERMS OF
BRINGING PEOPLE TOGETHER AROUND
COMMON INTERESTS.
THE PRESIDENTS IRAN STRATEGY HAS
BEEN VERY SIMPLE, WHICH IS THAT
HE THOUGHT THE DEAL THAT WAS
MADE PREVIOUSLY WAS THE WORST
DEAL, PERHAPS, IN HISTORY.
YOU HAD A DEAL THAT WAS SIGNED
WHERE YOU SENT THEM A COUPLE
BILLION DOLLARS IN CASH,
$150 BILLION TOTAL, GAVE THEM A
GLIDE PATH TO A NUCLEAR WEAPON
AND THE DAY THEY SIGNED IT THEY
WEREN’T SAYING THANK YOU AMERICA
THEY WERE IN THE STREETS SAYING,
DEATH TO AMERICA, DEATH TO
ISRAEL, AND THEN TRYING TO
DIVIDE THE MIDDLE EAST, SO THAT
WAS A BIG PROBLEM AND PRESIDENT
TRUMP HAS BROUGHT PEOPLE BACK
INTO THE ORBIT.
HE’S BEEN ABLE TO ACCOMPLISH
THIS HISTORIC BREAKTHROUGH AND I
DO THINK THAT FOR THE LAST
COUPLE YEARS PERHAPS I’VE BEEN
THE ONLY OPTIMISTIC PERSON ABOUT
THE MIDDLE EAST BUT I THINK
AFTER THIS DEAL EVERYONE ELSE IS
BELIEVING THAT SO MANY THINGS
COULD BE POSSIBLE, AND THAT WE
COULD PUT ALL DIFFERENCES ASIDE
AND FOCUS ON NEW-SHARED
OPPORTUNITIES AND THEN WITH
REGARDS TO THE WALL, THAT’S
MOVING INCREDIBLY FAST.
THAT WAS A PROJECT THAT
PRESIDENT TRUMP PROMISED DURING
HIS LAST ELECTION.
THE BORDER RIGHT NOW IS MORE
SECURE THAN EVER BEFORE, WHICH
IS CRITICAL IN THE AGE OF
CORONAVIRUS IN TERMS OF STOPPING
ILLEGAL DRUGS, HUMAN TRAFFICKING
, AND ILLEGAL SMUGGL
ING, AND WE HAVE ABOUT 300 MILES
COMPLETED AND WE ARE ON PACE
RIGHT NOW TO SURPASS OUR GOAL OF
450 MILES BY THE END OF THE YEAR
, AND THE BORDER PATROL
IS THRILLED.
THEY ARE I BELIEVE GOING TO BE
ENDORSING THE PRESIDENT AND THEY
BELIEVE THAT EVERY MILE OF WALL
MAKES THEIR OPERATIONS MORE
EFFICIENT BECAUSE IT’S LESS
MANPOWER THEY HAVE TO SPREAD OUT
OVER FEWER AMOUNT OF CROSSING
POTENTIAL AREAS.