Netanyahu Doubted Kushner’s Ability to Lead Mideast Peace Plan, Bolton Says in Book

John Bolton, U.S. President Donald Trump's former national security advisor, has revealed in his upcoming book that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu questioned the ability of the president's son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner to formulate a peace plan for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, according to quotes published in the Wall Street Journal and CNN.

In excerpts released on Thursday, Bolton said Netanyahu spoke with him before he joined the Trump administration and expressed bewilderment at Kushner’s appointment as White House senior advisor.  

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– LISTEN: How Netanyahu could fudge annexation, hoodwink Gantz and cling on to power

LISTEN: How Netanyahu could fudge annexation, hoodwink Gantz and cling on to power

Netanyahu “was dubious about assigning the task of bringing an end to the Israel-Palestinian conflict to Kushner, whose family Netanyahu had known for many years. He was enough of a politician not to oppose the idea publicly, but like much of the world, he wondered why Kushner thought he would succeed where the likes of Kissinger had failed,” Bolton wrote.

Kushner is considered as the one leading a more restrained approach in the Trump administration, seeking to limit or postpone Israel’s plan to unilaterally annex parts of the West Bank.

The Prime Minister’s Office issued a statement rejecting Bolton’s remarks. “Prime Minister Netanyahu has complete faith in Jared Kushner's abilities and resolve and rejects any description to the contrary.

“Kushner has greatly contributed to furthering peace in the Middle East.

The U.S. administration's Middle East team led by Kushner successfully formulated President Trump's principles into the Vision for Peace offering the most realistic blueprint for peace in our region,” the statement read.