Nabil Abu Rudeineh
Nabil Abu RudeinehReuters

The US administration has not yet fulfilled any of the promises made by President Joe Biden to Palestinian Authority (PA) chairman Mahmoud Abbas, Abbas’ spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeineh said on Tuesday, according to JPost’s Khaled Abu Toameh.

His remarks came one day after he and other senior PA officials, including PLO Executive Committee member Hussein al-Sheikh, held talks in Ramallah with US Deputy Assistant Secretary for Israeli and Palestinian Affairs Hady Amr.

Abu Rudeineh said the so-called “unfulfilled promises” included a pledge to reopen the US Consulate in Jerusalem, maintain the status quo in the city, and oppose unilateral Israeli measures such as the “seizure” of Palestinian money, a reference to tax revenues withheld by Israel in response to payments made by the PA to families of terrorist prisoners.

He called on the Biden administration to revise its policies toward the ongoing Israeli measures against the Palestinians. He also called for exerting pressure on Israel to halt its “aggression and crimes,” which don’t create a suitable atmosphere for any peace process.

The world “is still committed to the two-state solution, international law and international legitimacy,” Abu Rudeineh said, adding that as long as there is no solution to the Palestinian issue, the region will not live in peace, and as long as Jerusalem burns, the whole region will remain in a state of instability and tension.”

The PA had a tense relationship with the Trump administration and had been boycotting the US since 2017, in protest of Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and the relocation of the US embassy in Israel to the city.

However, since taking office, the Biden administration has renewed ties with the PA and had been crafting a plan aimed at “resetting” US ties with the PA.

In one move, the Biden administration announced it intends to resume aid to UNRWA as well as other aid to the PA which was suspended by the Trump administration.

In January, senior US and PA officials met virtually to renew the US-Palestinian Economic Dialogue for the first time in five years.

Last month, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke to Abbas. State Department spokesperson Ned Price said after the conversation that the two “discussed the importance of strengthening the US relationship with the Palestinian Authority and the Palestinian people, as well as the need to improve quality of life for Palestinians in tangible ways.”