Jared Kushner (first from right) meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Jerusalem EPA=Yonhap News. 

Jared Kushner (44), the eldest son-in-law of U.S. President Donald Trump, lived up to the expectations of his father-in-law, who describes himself as a "master negotiator."

On the 9th (local time), the New York Times (NYT) identified Kushner as the key figure who brokered the ceasefire agreement between Israel and the Palestinian armed group Hamas.

Kushner, from a real estate magnate family in New York, was a senior White House advisor during Trump's first term and led U.S. Middle East policy.

As a Jewish individual, he played an active role, including facilitating the normalization of relations between Israel and several Arab countries such as the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in 2020, but he did not hold any position in the second administration.

However, after his re-election, President Trump, who had been grappling with the Gaza war, one of the biggest challenges in U.S. diplomacy, entrusted Kushner with a significant role again.

He believed that Kushner, who honed his negotiation skills in the New York real estate industry rather than through traditional U.S. foreign policy and security channels, was the right person to achieve the agreement.

"In the New York real estate business, there's a lot to negotiate before you sign a contract and the money actually changes hands," Kushner said. "We are used to doing complex deals with complex people."

In the New York real estate industry, it is common sense to reach an agreement first and then negotiate the details later.

The principles of New York real estate negotiations were also applied in the process of reaching the Gaza war ceasefire agreement.

Although Hamas agreed only to the release of hostages regarding President Trump's 20-point peace plan and did not mention disarmament, Kushner advised Israel to "approach it positively."

The advice was to focus on the announcement of the hostage release and not be concerned about negative reactions regarding disarmament.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu eventually announced that he was ready to immediately implement the first phase of the Trump peace plan, and formal negotiations began.

"Special Envoy for Middle East Steve Witkoff and I know all too well that to get a deal done, you have to understand people," Kushner explained.

This means identifying the core demands that the other party cannot concede on and judging how far you can push them.

Special Envoy for Middle East Witkoff, a golf friend of President Trump, is also a New York real estate magnate.

Kushner commented on the negotiation style of traditional foreign policy and security officials, saying, "They have a lot of experience as professors or diplomats," but "they are completely different from us."

Some criticize Kushner, a civilian, for wielding influence in the U.S. diplomatic arena as a "behind-the-scenes power broker."

His private equity firm, Affinity Partners, has attracted investments from the Public Investment Fund, Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund led by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, and manages a private equity fund worth trillions of won.

There is a potential for a conflict of interest in Kushner, who is engaged in extensive business in the Middle East, exerting influence on Middle East diplomacy.

However, praise is also coming from the opposition Democratic Party for brokering the ceasefire agreement.

Thomas Nides, former U.S. Ambassador to Israel under the Biden administration, said, "Regardless of political affiliation, Kushner deserves full credit." He added, "He knows how to handle Netanyahu and has excellent understanding of Arab countries."

Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner. AP Yonhap News. 

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