During his post-inauguration executive order signing on Monday, President Donald Trump made it clear that the conflict between Israel and Gaza is not the responsibility of the United States.
“That’s not our war, it’s their war,” Trump said.
REPORTER: “How confident are you, Mr. President, that you can keep the ceasefire in Gaza?”
— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) January 21, 2025
TRUMP: “I’m not confident. That’s not our war — it’s their war.”pic.twitter.com/2GypynNtU0
The comment was made following a reporter asking the President how confident he is that the ceasefire in Gaza will last, which Trump replied he’s not confident in, as it’s “not our war”.
This statement likely stems from Trump’s observance of the Monroe Doctrine, a former cornerstone of U.S. foreign policy laid out by President James Monroe before Congress in 1823.
“Declaring that the Old World and New World had different systems and must remain distinct spheres, Monroe made four basic points: (1) the United States would not interfere in the internal affairs of or the wars between European powers; (2) the United States recognized and would not interfere with existing colonies and dependencies in the Western Hemisphere; (3) the Western Hemisphere was closed to future colonization; and (4) any attempt by a European power to oppress or control any nation in the Western Hemisphere would be viewed as a hostile act against the United States,” the Encyclopedia Britannica said.
Trump went on to say that it appears Gaza has been significantly weakened by the Israeli bombardment.
“Gaza, boy. I looked at a picture of Gaza. Gaza is, is like a massive demolition site. That place is, it’s really, got to be rebuilt in a different way,” Trump said.
The President went on to say he might help in the rebuilding of Gaza and that it’s a beautiful location.
Trump was then asked how he sees the future of Gaza’s governance.
“Well it depends. I can’t imagine you could have… well you certainly can’t have the people that were there, most of them are dead,” he said.