Washington : U.S. President Donald Trump is mulling how moving the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem would affect the Israeli-Palestinian peace deal.
The U.S. Secretary of State, Rex Tillerson, said in an interview that Trump is concerned about how moving the U.S. embassy would affect the Mideast peace process, VOA News.
“I think it’ll be informed, again, by the parties that are involved in those talks and most certainly…whether Israel views it as being helpful to a peace initiative or perhaps a distraction,” Tillerson said.
Following this, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reacted in a positive way, saying, “Moving the American embassy to Jerusalem will not harm the peace process.It will advance it by righting an historical wrong and by shattering the Palestinian fantasy that Jerusalem is not the capital of Israel.”
Israel annexed Jerusalem in 1967 and regards the entire city as its eternal capital. It has long urged the international community to relocate embassies there. Meanwhile, the Palestinians want East Jerusalem as the capital of their future state.
The Palestinians have maintained that an embassy move would kill any prospect for peace.
Trump promised to relocate the U.S. embassy as one of his campaign pledges but is yet to make a decision.
He will meet Israeli and Palestinian leaders as part of his first foreign trip later this week. (ANI)