Military restraint—a grand strategy that favors diplomacy over war and promotes advancing core national interests with minimal violence—has seemingly fused with the America-First foreign policy ethos of the Trump administration. Diplomatic initiatives such as negotiations with Iran over its nuclear program, sanctions relief for Syria, and a ceasefire with the Yemeni Houthis exemplify the pro-restraint, America-First approach that President Donald Trump is taking in the Middle East.

However, military restraint and America First have yet to be combined to properly address the question of Palestine. For the sake of regional stability in the Middle East, the rule of law in the United States, and America’s credibility abroad, that must change. To secure these interests and promote peace, the Trump administration should recognize either an independent Palestinian state or a binational one with voting rights for Palestinians and Israelis alike. 

He might even time such an announcement on Palestinian statehood to coincide with a possible one by European nations. French President Emmanuel Macron is pushing EU nations and the UK to jointly recognize a Palestinian state next month, according to recent reports.

This would be a just initiative that places little to no burden on American taxpayers. Since 1967, the United States has given Israel over $300 billion in military aid and has provided an additional $17.9 billion since Israel began bombarding Gaza in October 2023. Unlike Israel, Palestinians are not asking for a decades-long, multi-billion-dollar military pact with the United States. All they are asking for is to live peacefully in their lands as dignified human beings without being terrorized by Israel’s brutal military occupation. For a country that has “the land of the free and the home of the brave” in their national anthem, the U.S. ought to recognize where the Palestinians are coming from.

So far, the White House has been unwilling not only to recognize a Palestinian state, but to end Israel’s horrific conduct toward the Palestinians in both Gaza and the occupied West Bank. This unwillingness is only possible because previous administrations subverted weapons export laws to shield Israel from accountability. One infamous example of this came last August, when then-Secretary of State Antony Blinken blocked the Leahy Law designation for Netzah Yehuda, the IDF unit responsible for the gruesome 2022 killing of 78-year-old Palestinian-American Omar Assad. Blinken’s move allowed the U.S. to continue giving security assistance to the unit despite its war crimes. Three years after the killing of Assad, Israeli war crimes have only intensified—and may reach new, horrifying proportions in the coming weeks. 

Both Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich have each stated their intention for Israel to occupy Gaza and “concentrate” its population in small areas of the strip. Additionally, Netanyahu has admitted that he authorized a small amount of food aid to Gaza only to attenuate growing international condemnation of Israel’s atrocities there. 

Such statements add to the mounting evidence that Israel is deliberately committing war crimes against Palestinians with American weaponry and blocking the delivery of humanitarian assistance from entering Gaza—violations of the 1997 Leahy Law and Section 620I of the U.S. Foreign Assistance Act, respectively. Thus, U.S. actions to shield Israel from accountability undermine the rule of law.

Equally important, the United States’ refusal to use its existing leverage over Israel to stop what many consider a genocide in Gaza and ethnic cleansing in the West Bank has dealt a significant blow to America’s international credibility. By contrast, other Western nations are moving ahead to punish Israel for its crimes.

The European Union, for example, is revisiting its free trade agreements with Israel over its horrific treatment of Gazans. Meanwhile, the U.K. has suspended free-trade talks with Israel and slapped sanctions on Israeli West Bank settlers. 

The White House, for its part, has not only declined to punish Israel’s war crimes but even cancelled a small punitive measure imposed by the previous administration. Upon assuming office, Trump rescinded President Biden’s Executive Order 14115, which sanctioned violent settler leaders and entities in the West Bank responsible for crimes against Palestinians. It is hollow for the U.S. to condemn Russia’s aggression in Ukraine or human rights abuses in Iran while it actively enables Israel to burn and starve Palestinian children with American assistance. The haunting images circulating on X speak for themselves. Recognizing a Palestinian state to address the plight of Palestinians would go a long way in shoring up America’s dwindling credibility.

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In addition to reputational damage, America’s working with Israel to deny Palestinians their legal and God-given rights has undoubtedly raised tensions in the Middle East and risked destabilizing the entire region. After Israel invaded Gaza, Hezbollah and the Houthi rebels began attacking Israel and U.S. forces. In response, the U.S. found itself bombing Iranian-backed groups in Syria and Yemen, all while providing Israel whatever it needed to carry out a military assault on Gaza. As Israel’s horrific conduct in Gaza ramped up, so did prospects for a regional conflagration. The U.S. deployed THAAD missiles to Israel to defend it from a looming retaliatory attack by Iran. In essence, the world got to see how neglecting Palestinians’ rights could destabilize the entire Middle East and possibly drag the United States into brutal war in the region.

President Trump should change tack to prevent such a war, repair American credibility, and restore the rule of law. If he wants to make good on his pledge to be a “peacemaker and unifier,” as he promised in his inaugural address, Trump should stop Israel’s assault on Gaza and recognize a Palestinian state or an equal state for all. The current status quo is unacceptable, and for decades U.S. presidents have been reluctant to take an even-handed approach to the Israel-Palestine crisis. 

However, this moment presents at least a slim chance for a pivot toward Palestinian rights, thanks to the unpredictable nature of Trump. The president and his aides have already sidestepped Israel to pursue deals with Iran, Hamas, and the Houthis. They must now go one step further for the sake of the Palestinians—and for the very soul of America.