So who does this serve best?
In an interview on Sunday, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson discussed the recent rumor of President Trump rolling on one of his campaign promises to move the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem – a move that would signal to the world that the U.S. recognizes Jerusalem as the true capital of Israel.
While speaking with NBC’s Chuck Todd, Tillerson noted that Trump would need more time, to consider how such a move might hinder the peace process.
“Well, the president, I think rightly, has taken a very deliberative approach to understanding the issue itself, listening to input from all interested parties in the region, and understanding, in the context of a peace initiative, what impact would such a move have,” Tillerson told “Meet the Press” host Chuck Todd during an interview airing Sunday.
The president hosted Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas at the White House earlier in May.
Tillerson also stressed that Trump is weighing the input from both Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, trying to find that happy medium that both can agree on and that will allow for the recognition of Jerusalem as the capital.
Yeah. Good luck with that.
“The president has recently expressed his view that he wants to put a lot of effort into seeing if we cannot advance a peace initiative between Israel and Palestine,” Tillerson said. “And so, I think in large measure the president is being very careful to understand how such a decision would impact a peace process.”
Trump has also suggested that he would put his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, in charge of bringing about peace in the Middle East.
Again… good luck.
Vice President Pence addressed an Israeli Independence Day event earlier this month, as well, and assured them that Trump’s intent was to move the embassy to Jerusalem. However, getting the Palestinians and Israel to agree on this very contentious, boiling point issue won’t be as easy as just a promise.
Many have come before, pressing a peace deal between the two sides, and it usually ends up with Israel giving up more territory and still dodging rocket fire from Hamas.
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