USA TODAY Editors

President Trump recently observed how difficult it is to negotiate a compromise on a health bill to replace Obamacare.

Think that's tough? Wait until he tries to negotiate a peace deal between Israel and Palestinians. That's something he has vowed to accomplish — and repeated at a White House meeting Wednesday with Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas. "We will get it done," Trump said.

Trump hopes for 'terrific' peace deal in Middle East

Forging peace an agreement that leads to an independent Palestinian state living peacefully next to Israel is really hard, which is why there has been no progress toward an accord for years. Here's why:

Israel's security

Israel says any peace agreement must provide for the country's territorial security. Abbas, a moderate, recognizes Israel's right to exist. but many radical Palestinian leaders and Arab neighbors have never done so since the creation of the Jewish state in 1948. The result has been several wars and a permanent state of tension. While Abbas may be open to a deal, he may not be in a position of leadership much longer. He is 82, lacks support from radical Palestinian factions, and has been unable — or unwilling — to end a recent string of attacks on Israelis by Palestinians.

Hamas, the militant faction that governs the Gaza strip, issued a new policy this week that calls for creation of a Palestinian state and no longer urges Israel's destruction. But the group, which the U.S. government considers a terrorist organization, stopped short of recognizing Israel's right to exist.

Borders

Abbas wants a Palestinian state in the West Bank — land located west of the Jordan River. Israel, which captured it from Jordanian control during the Six Day War in 1967, claims historical rights to at least some of that territory. It says the borders of a Palestinian state should be negotiated and not mandated by the Palestinians.

Some Israelis, saying Palestinian violence will never end, oppose an independent state. Instead, they want Israel's government to annex the West Bank and create an autonomous region for Palestinians overseen by Israel security forces.

Settlements

A big-stumbling block is what to do about the Israeli settlements on land claimed by the Palestinians. Nearly 600,000 Jews live in these settlements, which Israelis defend as legitimate but which much of the world community considers illegal. The Palestinians want settlements dismantled. Israel intends to keep most, if not all, of them, though some might be within the borders of a new Palestinian state.

Jerusalem

Jerusalem was divided before the 1967 war — the east was in Arab control and the west in Israeli control. But Israel now has full control of its capital city and vows never to allow a division again. Palestinians insist on regaining control of East Jerusalem and making it the capital of their new state.

The world community does not recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital, saying its future should be negotiated as part of a peace deal. However, Trump raised the possibility of moving the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem from Tel Aviv, where other countries also have their embassies.

Palestinian refugees

Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians were displaced when Israel was created as an independent nation. Their descendants, now numbering in the millions, have demanded a "right of return" to their homeland. That is no longer practical and would result in a country where Palestinians outnumber Israeli Jews. Israel says the issue should be resolved as part of negotiations on the contours of a Palestinian state.