US envoys encouraged to brief EU officials on Gaza plan

US envoys, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, were reportedly recommended to brief EU representatives on the Gaza peace plan by French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot, as reported by the Middle East Eye and agencies on December 15th.

Reportedly, Barrot made the suggestion to EU Foreign Policy Chief Kaja Kallas, stating that the US envoys should brief EU foreign ministers on the US-backed Gaza ceasefire plan, which came into effect on October 10th.

Barrot said that he “suggested to the High Representative that Witkoff and Kushner, the US President’s envoys, could address the European Union’s foreign ministers today to provide an update on the implementation of President Trump’s peace plan.”

France has been heavily involved in supporting the US-led peace initiative, including by deploying military and civilian personnel to Israel in October to support the process.

Officially, France has remained somewhat ambiguous in its approach to Israel, despite allegations that the country has provided arms to Israel during its genocidal war on Gaza.

Witkoff and Kushner played a key role in negotiating the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, including Kushner discussing plans for the government of a post-war Gaza Strip with former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair.

Witkoff is credited with developing a 60-point peace plan, which Trump’s ceasefire plan is said to be based on. Reportedly, Witkoff’s advisor is Aryeh Lightstone, a US rabbi who also served as advisor to former US Ambassador to Israel, David Friedman, who held the ambassador role from 2017 to 2021.

During his time as ambassador, Friedman supported the expansion of Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories and the annexation of the West Bank.

Lightstone is reportedly under the supervision of Kushner, with Kushner being a personal friend of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

In October, Kushner suggested that reconstruction funds should only be allocated to areas of Gaza under Israeli control, despite concerns that Israel was attempting to partition Gaza through its refusal to fully withdraw.

Kushner’s involvement in the peace process is controversial, not least because of remarks he made in 2024 when he suggested depopulating Gaza, claiming that the enclave’s “waterfront property could be very valuable”.

Middle East Eye and agencies, Maghrebi.org