‘That’s not our policy’: Coalition splits with Trump on Gaza ‘clean-out’

The federal Coalition has rejected Donald Trump’s proposal to “clean out” Gaza by resettling Palestinians in nearby countries, breaking with the United States president on a key issue amid a domestic debate about how to respond to his policies.

Opposition foreign affairs spokesman David Coleman, who was named to the post on the weekend, said the idea of removing Palestinians from Gaza was not Coalition policy and he wanted to see a two-state solution with an agreement on territorial boundaries.

Trump drew praise from some Israeli political leaders but swift rejection from Jordan and Egypt after he said the two countries should take as many as 1.5 million people from Gaza on temporary or long-term resettlement.

Opposition foreign affairs spokesman David Coleman says a Coalition government would argue for a two-state solution for the Palestinian and Israeli people, not the plan put forward by Donald Trump.Credit: AFR

“You’re talking about a million and half people, and we just clean out that whole thing,” the US president told reporters on Saturday.

“So I’d rather get involved with some of the Arab nations and build housing in a different location, where they can maybe live in peace for a change.”

Coleman said in an interview that a Coalition government would argue for a two-state solution for the Palestinian and Israeli people, not the plan put forward by Trump.

“That’s not our policy,” he said. “We’ve supported a negotiated two-state solution for a long time and continue to do so. So that’s not our policy.”

Asked whether the Coalition believed Gaza should and would remain Palestinian, he said the outcome would have to be a negotiated border without any involvement of Hamas, the listed terrorist group that attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, killing some 1200 people. Israel’s military campaign since has killed more than 47,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.

“We support a two-state solution, and that requires the resolution of issues about the boundaries of the Palestinian territory and the state of Israel, and we continue to support what we’ve supported for decades,” Coleman said.

“It can’t be done unilaterally, though. It can’t be done without the full involvement of Israel, and plainly, it can’t be done with a terrorist organisation that is intent on destroying Israel.”

The remarks signal a policy gulf with Trump after regular disputes in Australian politics about the American alliance, with Opposition Leader Peter Dutton attacking the government for splitting with the US on votes about Israel at the United Nations.

Trump did not elaborate on his plan for Gaza after speaking about it to journalists, but Jordan and Egypt made it clear they would not accept his proposal. Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, however, said on social media it was a “great idea”.

Coalition home affairs spokesman James Paterson also rejected the Trump proposal.

“That’s not my view, and that’s not the policy of the Liberal Party in Australia,” he told the ABC’s 7.30 program on Monday night.

Coleman, the Liberal member for Banks in southern Sydney, was a media executive before entering parliament in 2013. He was immigration minister from 2018 to 2020 and also served as an assistant minister for mental health. Dutton named him the foreign affairs spokesman on Saturday, elevating him from the communications portfolio.

Asked if he believed establishing an independent Palestinian state alongside Israel was actually possible, Coleman said it was one of the most complex problems in the world and would only happen with the removal of Hamas.

“There can’t be a two-state solution that in any way involves Hamas at all. And while Hamas is involved in Gaza, there cannot be a negotiation,” he said.

“Hamas is intent on murdering and slaughtering Israelis, as it did on October 7. The notion that Hamas could be a part of any two-state solution is completely outrageous and unacceptable.”

Foreign Minister Penny Wong has regularly said a two-state solution could proceed only if Hamas had no role in a Palestinian state. She has also argued for reforms to the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank to ensure it would not be in a position to threaten Israel.

Wong has acknowledged, however, that the international community was considering whether to recognise a Palestinian state before a two-state solution, rather than as part of the final agreement.

The Coalition said her remarks put “statehood before security” and rewarded Hamas, a criticism Wong rejected on the grounds that she had said there was no place for Hamas in any solution.

Dutton is yet to decide on a separate question on Israel after Trump moved in his first presidency to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and relocate the American embassy to that city.

Former prime minister Scott Morrison backed the Trump policy by recognising West Jerusalem as the capital in December 2018. Wong reversed that decision in October 2022, angering Israel.

Coleman said the Coalition would have more to say on Jerusalem at a later date.

While Trump has threatened countries with tariffs to protect American industry, Coleman said the Coalition had worked to prevent tariffs on steel and aluminium in the first Trump administration seven years ago.

Asked if Australia should consider tariffs on American products in response to tariffs on Australian exports, Coleman said: “No. What Australia should be focusing on is ensuring that tariffs aren’t applied, in continuing to work effectively with the United States administration.”

Coleman stepped up the Coalition criticism of Wong over the war in Ukraine, in line with concerns expressed by his predecessor, Simon Birmingham, over more than two years.

While Coleman did not commit to giving Ukraine more military or humanitarian aid, he said the government had been too slow at times to send military equipment and other help to Ukraine.

He said it was “inexplicable” that it had taken so long for the government to decide to restore the Australian embassy in Kyiv.

“We have been concerned that they have been somewhat slow to respond to requests from the Ukrainian government … for things like access to Australian coal, on access to Australian helicopters,” he said.

“And they only provided tanks after effectively being forced into doing so by a public campaign.”

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