In White House speech, Trump recognizes Jerusalem as capital of Israel in reversal of longtime U.S. policy
By David Nakamura
The Washington Post
December 6, 2017
President Trump on Wednesday formally recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, defying warnings from other Mideast countries and some U.S. allies in a politically risky move that he insisted would not derail his administration’s efforts to broker a peace deal.
In a midday speech at the White House, Trump defended his decision as “long overdue” and argued that a peace agreement between the Israelis and Palestinians has remained elusive for more than two decades even as his predecessors declined to recognize the contested city as Israel’s capital.
“Some say they lacked courage, but they made the best judgment based on the facts as they understood them,” Trump said, speaking in the Diplomatic Reception Room. “Nevertheless, the record is in. After more than two decades, we’re no closer to a lasting peace agreement.”
Trump added that “it’s folly to assume that repeating the exactly the same formula will produce a different or better result.”
The announcement came a day after senior White House aides previewed Trump’s decision, and the president also ordered the State Department to begin planning to move the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, a process that administration officials said would take years.
Trump emphasized that despite his decision he remained fully committed to helping broker a peace agreement. The White House is working on a peace plan to be unveiled sometime next year.
“The United States remains deeply committed to helping facilitate a peace agreement that is acceptable to both sides,’ Trump said. “I intend to do everything in my power to forge such an agreement.”
Trump’s decision was hailed in Israel. The Jerusalem municipality announced ahead of Trump’s speech that it would illuminate the ancient walls of Jerusalem Old City with an Israeli and an American flag, “as a token of appreciation to President Trump for his recognition of Jerusalem.” The city said that American flags would be hung on the streets surrounding the U.S. consulate.
Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat said that “the expected announcement by President Trump to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel is a historic declaration that sends a clear message to the entire world that the U.S. stands with the Jewish people, the State of Israel and Jerusalem.”
“As a gesture and expression of the courageous friendship between the American people and the people of Israel, we decided to project the American and Israeli flags onto the walls of Jerusalem’s Old City, the ultimate symbol of the strength of the Jewish people’s connection to Jerusalem for over 3,000 years.”
Yet other Mideast nations and some U.S. allies condemned the decision ahead of Trump’s speech, suggesting the shift in policy would inflame regional tensions and make the process of brokering a peace deal between the Israelis and Palestinians more difficult.
“We think it’s an unwise step and a counterproductive step. If we want to solve at some moment the conflict between the Palestinians and the Israelis, we need a two-state solution, and a one-sided step is not going to help,” Dutch Foreign Minister Halbe Zijlstra said Wednesday.
“I don’t think we can use another conflict in this very explosive region,” Zijlstra said, adding that he had conveyed his concerns to U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson in Brussels, during a NATO meeting.
But Tillerson insisted such concerns were misguided. Attending the meeting in Brussels, Tillerson said: “We continue to believe there is a very good opportunity for peace to be achieved.” He urged people to listen to Trump’s full speech and its context before passing judgment.
“The president is very committed to the Middle East peace process,” Tillerson said. “He has a team he put into place. That team has been working very diligently.”
White House aides emphasized that Trump’s decision would make clear to Mideast countries that the president, who campaigned on promises to move the embassy to Jerusalem, keeps his word. Senior adviser Jared Kushner and other top administration officials are working on a proposed peace plan for the region, but aides said that it is not imminent and the team would have time to factor in public reaction to Trump’s speech.
One administration official, speaking on condition of anonymity, acknowledged that the Palestinians would likely threaten to reject peace talks. But this person said the White House recognized that peace deals often are not linear in how they are negotiated and that often such deals are presumed dead more than once before they reach the finish line.
“Trump remains committed to a lasting peace agreement,” said another administration official, who was not authorized to speak on the record.
EDITOR’S NOTE; Contrary to the State Department spokesman’s statement that moving the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem would take years, Jerusalem’s mayor said it can be done immediately. All that has to be done is to change the sign on the U.S. consulate in Jerusalem.
And in a joint statement, the Palestinian "national and Islamic forces" called for three days of rage (rioting) that would begin Wednesday and end on Friday. "We call on all our people in Israel and around the world to gather in city centers and Israeli embassies and consulates, with the aim of bringing about general popular anger," the statement said.
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