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Trump to Recognize Jerusalem as Israel's Capital, White House Confirms

(Times of Israel) Eric Cortellessa - "On December 6, 2017, President Trump will recognize that Jerusalem is the capital of Israel," a White House official confirmed Tuesday. President Trump "views this as a recognition of reality, both historic reality and modern reality. While President Trump recognizes that the status of Jerusalem is a highly sensitive issue, he does not think it will be resolved by ignoring the truth that Jerusalem is home to Israel's legislature, its Supreme Court, the Prime Minister's residence, and as such, it is the capital of Israel." White House officials added that Trump "recognizes that the specific boundaries of Israeli sovereignty in Jerusalem are subject to final-status negotiations for such an agreement" and that this action does not change the "status quo of the Temple Mount/Haram al-Sharif." "The president has instructed the State Department to develop a plan for moving the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem with the minimal additional burden on American taxpayers," one official said. Another said, "There is no facility they can move into in Jerusalem, as of today. It will take some time to find a site, address security concerns, design the new facility, fund the new facility, and build it, so that this is not an instantaneous process." Trump will not, however, "specify a timetable" for that process. "President Trump remains committed to achieving a lasting peace agreement between Israelis and Palestinians and is optimistic that peace can be achieved," an official said. "Delaying the recognition to Jerusalem as the capital of Israel has done nothing to achieve peace for more than two decades." An official added, "President Trump is prepared to support a two-state solution to the dispute between Israelis and Palestinians, if that's what's agreed to by the two parties."
2017-12-06 00:00:00
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