“Dennis Ross, who served as Bill Clinton’s Middle East envoy, interpreted Greenblatt’s departure as a sign that the Trump administration does not expect its forthcoming peace plan — which is set to be released at some unspecified point after Israel’s Sept. 17 elections — to lead even to follow-up negotiations.

“… If the plan is in fact dead on arrival, Ross said, Berkowitz will be left with something of a mop-up job, tasked with finding areas for incremental progress and trying to prevent the plan’s release from deepening the conflict.

“‘His challenge will be in the aftermath of the release of the plan to try to make sure you can manage the situation,’ said Ross, who this month published a book, Be Strong and of Good Courage, about the Israel-Palestine conflict. ‘When you have a sense of hopelessness out there, that doesn’t make stability more likely…’”

Read the full article here: