Following up on a campaign promise he made to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a September 2016 meeting, U.S. President Trump announced on Dec. 6 that he recognizes Jerusalem as the “ancient capital of the Jewish people” and as the state of Israel.
“While previous presidents have made this a major campaign promise, they failed to deliver. Today, I am delivering,” Trump said. “Israel is a sovereign nation with the right like every other sovereign nation to determine its own capital. Acknowledging this as a fact is a necessary condition for achieving peace.”
The announcement drew immediate rebuke from leaders in Turkey, Jordan, the Vatican, the United Nations and across the Middle East and was seen as a shift in U.S. policy that could invalidate the U.S. role in negotiating Israeli-Palestinian peace talks.
A Wavering U.S. Position
Trump said he is developing plans to relocate the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem — an action that may take years. Meanwhile, he signed a waiver delaying the relocation of the embassy for at least another six months.
The split decision — recognition without actually moving the embassy — is viewed by many observers as a compromise that allows him to fulfill a campaign promise without actually taking action.
It follows two decades similar mixed signals by U.S. presidents on the status of Jerusalem. In 1995, then President Clinton signed into law the Jerusalem Embassy Act, which requires the United States to relocate its embassy to Jerusalem “no later than May 31, 1999.” Clinton signed the 1995 law but reportedly opposed it because it could undermine negotiations between the two parties.
The 1995 law allows the U.S. president to postpone the move for six month periods if the president deems it necessary to protect national security, and each president has done just that.
Global Reaction
Despite the uncertainty over the U.S. embassy location, the announcement itself was being cast as a major change in U.S. foreign policy. It drew widespread criticism and warnings from both allies and adversaries.
Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Bekir Bozdag warned that U.S. recognition of Jerusalem “would cause catastrophe” leading to new conflict in the Middle East. Jordanian King Abdullah said the decision would have “dangerous repercussions on the stability and security of the region.” And Saudi Arabia King Salman Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud said he warned Trump that the move would harm chances for a peace deal and would inflame the Muslim world. Iran’s foreign ministry said U.S. action to move its embassy would “incite Muslims and inflame a new intifada and encourage extremism and violent behavior.”
The Arab League planned an emergency meeting for Dec. 11.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hailed the “historic” and “courageous and just” decision and said it would not hurt peace talks. “The president’s decision is an important step towards peace, for there is no peace that doesn’t include Jerusalem as the capital of the State of Israel,” Netanyahu was quoted as saying in the Times of Israel.
Background
Status of Jerusalem
Jerusalem currently has no embassies located in it. If the United States moves its embassy there, it would be the first embassy in the city since 2006 when Costa Rica and El Salvador moved theirs to Tel Aviv. The remaining embassies shuttered or moved in 1980, when Israel’s legislature declared it the “complete and united capital of Israel.” That decision, according to Haaretz News Columnist David B. Green, was condemned by the UN Security Council as a provocation and violation of international law.
The Palestinians want to locate their capital in East Jerusalem.
The status of Jerusalem is one of the four core issues in the Israeli-Palestinian divide. The other issues being borders, the right of return for Palestinian refugees and the recognition of sovereignty of Israel and Palestine.
Trump said the United States still supports a two-state solution and is “not taking a position on boundaries or borders,” which would be subject to final status negotiations between the parties.
Mutual Recognition
In 2012, 138 countries voted for a United Nations motion recognizing Palestine as a state. Nine member countries voted against the motion and 41 abstained from the vote. (GA/11317 on Nov. 29, 2012). Meanwhile, 161 UN member states recognize Israel as a sovereign state, leaving 31 states that do not.
Mutual recognition of each other’s status and sovereignty is a significant issue for both.
For further reading, see:
President Trump’s Remarks on the Decision,
White House Statement on the Decision.
Haaretz, ” Trump, Take Note: How Jerusalem Went From Hosting 16 Embassies to Zero.”
Time Magazine, “The 1995 Law Behind President Trump’s Plan to Move the U.S. Embassy.”
Reuters, Trump tells Netanyahu he would recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital
The Jerusalem Embassy Act of 1995.
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