Jared Kushner says Biden should build on 'strong hand' inherited from Trump on Middle East policy

Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of former President Donald Trump who led the previous administration's efforts to negotiate peace in the Middle East, wrote Sunday that President Biden should build on Trump's successes with the "strong hand" he inherited.

Kushner said that Biden is "rightly" making confronting China "a priority in its foreign policy," but also implored the president to keep a focus on both building peace in the Middle East and being tough on Iran.  "While many were troubled by the Biden team’s opening offer to work with Europe and rejoin the Iran deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, I saw it as a smart diplomatic move," Kushner wrote, while noting that Biden's team has a much better rapport with Iran than Trump's. "The Biden administration called Iran’s bluff. It revealed to the Europeans that the JCPOA is dead and only a new framework can bring stability for the future. When Iran asked for a reward merely for initiating negotiations, President Biden did the right thing and refused."