Trump's Mideast Appointees Raise Ethical and Political Concerns
Haaretz
By Ben Samuels
Dec 31, 2024 10:09 pm IST
Top officials' ties to the region – and, in particular, the Gulf States - may influence Israel and Gaza, the Lebanon cease-fire, post-Assad Syria and Saudi normalization. And meanwhile, business is only speeding up for Trump's private interests in the area
Several of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's nominees and appointees for key policy positions have deep personal and financial ties across the Middle East. This sets up a repeat for concerns from his first administration about alleged personal conflicts of interest informing key policy decisions.
To be sure, such concerns are not unique to the incoming Trump administration. In fact, the so-called revolving door between senior U.S. policymakers and private-interest groups has been one of the defining characteristics of administrations both Republican and Democratic over the past several decades.
With Trump, however, his top officials' ties to the region — and Gulf states, in particular — could have dramatic ramifications on policies ranging from Israel's war in Gaza, the fragile cease-fire in Lebanon, post-Assad Syria, ongoing Saudi normalization efforts and so much more.
Any conversation concerning Trump's Mideast policy should begin with Steve Witkoff, his close friend tapped as his special Middle East envoy despite his professional experience being exclusively limited to real estate.
Since being tapped for the position, Witkoff has already spoken to a crypto conference in Abu Dhabi. He also holds deep professional ties with Qatar — one of the key mediators in efforts to secure a Gaza cease-fire before Trump assumes power.
He participated in Qatar Economic Forum last May alongside a top government official in charge of regulating real estate projects; his son and business partner Alex Witkoff also took part in an official event meant to explore Qatari real estate development opportunities.
Witkoff's ties to Qatar and the UAE date back to his megadeals with each country's respective sovereign wealth funds in the Witkoff-owned Park Lane Hotel in New York, as reported by the New York Times.
Abu Dhabi's Mubadala Investment Company contributed $135 million as part of Witkoff's $660 million purchase of the hotel in 2013 from the estate of Leona Helmsley, the "Queen of Mean."
Mubadala increased its stake by $140 million in order to block U.S. government from seizing the hotel and secure a new loan to restructure debt on the building. The Qatar Investment Authority then bought out Witkoff for $623 million, months after his appearance at the economic forum in May.
Despite Qatar's billing of Witkoff at the crypto conference, it remains unclear if his position will be a federal job that requires to publicly disclose his financial holdings and prohibits any professional activity leading to personal enrichment.
Out with the old
There is still a chance that Witkoff will remain a nongovernmental advisor, like his similarly titled colleague Massad Boulos, who is also the father-in-law of Trump's daughter Tiffany.
Trump tapped Boulos to be his senior advisor on Arab and Middle Eastern affairs largely due to his connections throughout Lebanon and Syria, but a New York Times investigation published three weeks ago detailed his exaggerated wealth and connections, and could adversely impact his standing with Trump despite their familial ties.
Notwithstanding the established tradition of "one administration at a time" during the transition period, both Boulos and Witkoff have been quick at work throughout the region .
Witkoff was the first Trump official to meet with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, nearly one month after the U.S. election following his trip to the UAE for the December crypto conference, as well as with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Israel.
Boulos, meanwhile, met with Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani in Doha and Jordan's King Abdullah during his Washington visit. He and Witkoff also met with Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer in Washington.
Other Trump nominees have deep professional ties of their own right. Trump recently nominated billionaire Stephen Feinberg as his deputy defense secretary, effectively making him second-in-command at the Pentagon behind his contentious nominee Pete Hegseth.
Feinberg, who served as chair of Trump's Intelligence Advisory Board during the first administration, co-founded the private equity Cerberus Capital Management firm that financed the Arkansas-based Tier 1 Group.
The group infamously provided paramilitary training - with State Department approval - to the Saudi secret unit responsible for Jamal Khashoggi's killing and MBS' extensive campaign targeting Saudi dissidents which included detention and torture.
Eyes, ears and voice for the UAE
One country poised to have a far greater influence than anticipated just a month ago is Turkey. Trump forecasted it will play the premier role in determining the fate of Syria following the downfall of the Assad regime.
"Turkey is going to hold the key to Syria," Trump said following Assad's ouster. "Erdogan is somebody I got along with great," he noted, "he's built a very strong, powerful army."
"They've wanted it for thousands of years and he got it and those people that went in are controlled by Turkey," he continued. "And that's OK."
Trump's vague praise of Erdogan, which did not account for his plans for the nearly 2,000 U.S. troops still in Syria, came days after he nominated Tom Barrack as ambassador to Turkey.
Barrack, who was Trump's inaugural committee chair in 2016, was charged with using his personal access to Trump to illegally promote the UAE's interests as an unregistered foreign agent.
Prosecutors accused Tom Barrack, an Arabic speaker of Lebanese descent, of secretly working to promote the interests of the UAE by influencing Trump's foreign policy. They alleged that he aimed to become the "eyes, ears and the voice" for the UAE within the administration. Additionally he was accused of trying to leverage his connections to secure tens of millions of dollars in UAE investments for one of his funds and a real estate project he was developing.
In comments echoed by Trump's new appointees, Barrack lauded Trump's "lack of predictability" as spurring diplomacy, noting that "every foreign leader has come to the table for him." He was eventually acquitted of all charges in November 2022.
Perhaps the most significant ties in Trump-world to the Middle East, however, are coming from his family outside of Washington.
Jared Kushner, his son-in-law, has said he won't return to the White House. However, he is expected to play an unofficial backchannel role in efforts to normalize relations between Saudi Arabia and Israel. Since leaving office, Kushner has secured nearly $3 billion in commitments from the sovereign wealth funds of Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE for his private-equity fund, Affinity Partners.
Kushner's post-White House career undoubtedly sets a playbook for the incoming Trump team, showing how they can leverage their connections for future business opportunities.
The Trump Organization, meanwhile, has undertaken a number of real estate deals in the Middle East in the years since Trump's first term, setting up an entire new litany of ethical concerns.
This includes deals to build luxury hotels and golf courses with a privately-owned Saudi real estate company known as Dar Al Arkan, which is close with the Saudi government. One of these projects is occurring on land owned by the government of Oman, a crucial backchannel with Iran.
Despite ethical concerns, business is only speeding up between Trump's private interests and the Gulf. "Following the remarkable success of Trump International Oman, as well as our most recent ventures in Dubai and Jeddah, we are thrilled to announce two additional projects in Riyadh," Eric Trump, the president-elect's son who oversees the company's real estate interests, said in an announcement one month after Trump's victory.
By Ben Samuels
Dec 31, 2024 10:09 pm IST
Top officials' ties to the region – and, in particular, the Gulf States - may influence Israel and Gaza, the Lebanon cease-fire, post-Assad Syria and Saudi normalization. And meanwhile, business is only speeding up for Trump's private interests in the area
Several of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's nominees and appointees for key policy positions have deep personal and financial ties across the Middle East. This sets up a repeat for concerns from his first administration about alleged personal conflicts of interest informing key policy decisions.
To be sure, such concerns are not unique to the incoming Trump administration. In fact, the so-called revolving door between senior U.S. policymakers and private-interest groups has been one of the defining characteristics of administrations both Republican and Democratic over the past several decades.
With Trump, however, his top officials' ties to the region — and Gulf states, in particular — could have dramatic ramifications on policies ranging from Israel's war in Gaza, the fragile cease-fire in Lebanon, post-Assad Syria, ongoing Saudi normalization efforts and so much more.
Any conversation concerning Trump's Mideast policy should begin with Steve Witkoff, his close friend tapped as his special Middle East envoy despite his professional experience being exclusively limited to real estate.
Since being tapped for the position, Witkoff has already spoken to a crypto conference in Abu Dhabi. He also holds deep professional ties with Qatar — one of the key mediators in efforts to secure a Gaza cease-fire before Trump assumes power.
He participated in Qatar Economic Forum last May alongside a top government official in charge of regulating real estate projects; his son and business partner Alex Witkoff also took part in an official event meant to explore Qatari real estate development opportunities.
Witkoff's ties to Qatar and the UAE date back to his megadeals with each country's respective sovereign wealth funds in the Witkoff-owned Park Lane Hotel in New York, as reported by the New York Times.
Abu Dhabi's Mubadala Investment Company contributed $135 million as part of Witkoff's $660 million purchase of the hotel in 2013 from the estate of Leona Helmsley, the "Queen of Mean."
Mubadala increased its stake by $140 million in order to block U.S. government from seizing the hotel and secure a new loan to restructure debt on the building. The Qatar Investment Authority then bought out Witkoff for $623 million, months after his appearance at the economic forum in May.
Despite Qatar's billing of Witkoff at the crypto conference, it remains unclear if his position will be a federal job that requires to publicly disclose his financial holdings and prohibits any professional activity leading to personal enrichment.
Out with the old
There is still a chance that Witkoff will remain a nongovernmental advisor, like his similarly titled colleague Massad Boulos, who is also the father-in-law of Trump's daughter Tiffany.
Trump tapped Boulos to be his senior advisor on Arab and Middle Eastern affairs largely due to his connections throughout Lebanon and Syria, but a New York Times investigation published three weeks ago detailed his exaggerated wealth and connections, and could adversely impact his standing with Trump despite their familial ties.
Notwithstanding the established tradition of "one administration at a time" during the transition period, both Boulos and Witkoff have been quick at work throughout the region .
Witkoff was the first Trump official to meet with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, nearly one month after the U.S. election following his trip to the UAE for the December crypto conference, as well as with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Israel.
Boulos, meanwhile, met with Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani in Doha and Jordan's King Abdullah during his Washington visit. He and Witkoff also met with Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer in Washington.
Other Trump nominees have deep professional ties of their own right. Trump recently nominated billionaire Stephen Feinberg as his deputy defense secretary, effectively making him second-in-command at the Pentagon behind his contentious nominee Pete Hegseth.
Feinberg, who served as chair of Trump's Intelligence Advisory Board during the first administration, co-founded the private equity Cerberus Capital Management firm that financed the Arkansas-based Tier 1 Group.
The group infamously provided paramilitary training - with State Department approval - to the Saudi secret unit responsible for Jamal Khashoggi's killing and MBS' extensive campaign targeting Saudi dissidents which included detention and torture.
Eyes, ears and voice for the UAE
One country poised to have a far greater influence than anticipated just a month ago is Turkey. Trump forecasted it will play the premier role in determining the fate of Syria following the downfall of the Assad regime.
"Turkey is going to hold the key to Syria," Trump said following Assad's ouster. "Erdogan is somebody I got along with great," he noted, "he's built a very strong, powerful army."
"They've wanted it for thousands of years and he got it and those people that went in are controlled by Turkey," he continued. "And that's OK."
Trump's vague praise of Erdogan, which did not account for his plans for the nearly 2,000 U.S. troops still in Syria, came days after he nominated Tom Barrack as ambassador to Turkey.
Barrack, who was Trump's inaugural committee chair in 2016, was charged with using his personal access to Trump to illegally promote the UAE's interests as an unregistered foreign agent.
Prosecutors accused Tom Barrack, an Arabic speaker of Lebanese descent, of secretly working to promote the interests of the UAE by influencing Trump's foreign policy. They alleged that he aimed to become the "eyes, ears and the voice" for the UAE within the administration. Additionally he was accused of trying to leverage his connections to secure tens of millions of dollars in UAE investments for one of his funds and a real estate project he was developing.
In comments echoed by Trump's new appointees, Barrack lauded Trump's "lack of predictability" as spurring diplomacy, noting that "every foreign leader has come to the table for him." He was eventually acquitted of all charges in November 2022.
Perhaps the most significant ties in Trump-world to the Middle East, however, are coming from his family outside of Washington.
Jared Kushner, his son-in-law, has said he won't return to the White House. However, he is expected to play an unofficial backchannel role in efforts to normalize relations between Saudi Arabia and Israel. Since leaving office, Kushner has secured nearly $3 billion in commitments from the sovereign wealth funds of Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE for his private-equity fund, Affinity Partners.
Kushner's post-White House career undoubtedly sets a playbook for the incoming Trump team, showing how they can leverage their connections for future business opportunities.
The Trump Organization, meanwhile, has undertaken a number of real estate deals in the Middle East in the years since Trump's first term, setting up an entire new litany of ethical concerns.
This includes deals to build luxury hotels and golf courses with a privately-owned Saudi real estate company known as Dar Al Arkan, which is close with the Saudi government. One of these projects is occurring on land owned by the government of Oman, a crucial backchannel with Iran.
Despite ethical concerns, business is only speeding up between Trump's private interests and the Gulf. "Following the remarkable success of Trump International Oman, as well as our most recent ventures in Dubai and Jeddah, we are thrilled to announce two additional projects in Riyadh," Eric Trump, the president-elect's son who oversees the company's real estate interests, said in an announcement one month after Trump's victory.
