PA cabinet leader warns against change in status quo in Jerusalem as Truss contemplates relocating embassy.
Elad Benari4.10.22, 5:30
Palestinian Authority (PA) cabinet leader Mohammad Shtayyeh voiced concern on Monday over Britain’s decision to review the location of its embassy in Israel, Reuters reported.
“Any change in the status quo in Jerusalem would undermine the two-state solution and will be considered a tacit recognition of the city’s annexation to Israel, which will encourage the occupying state,” Shtayyeh was quoted as having said at a weekly cabinet meeting in Ramallah.
His comments follow reports that British Prime Minister Liz Truss told Prime Minister Yair Lapid during a recent meeting that she is reviewing moving the British embassy in Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.
Truss initially pledged to review moving the embassy to Jerusalem last month, when she was running for the leadership of the Conservative Party. She made the pledge in a letter to the Conservative Friends of Israel.
A spokesperson for the British government’s Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office told Reuters in a statement that on Monday Truss “understands the importance and sensitivity of the location of the British embassy in Israel”.
“We are undertaking a review of the current location to ensure that we are in the best possible position to continue promoting British interests in Israel, peace and stability in the region, and in support of a two-state solution,” the spokesperson said. “We will not speculate on the outcome of any review before it concludes.”
Former US President Donald Trump recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and relocated the US Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem in May of 2018.
Following Trump’s announcement, Guatemala also relocated its embassy to Jerusalem. Paraguay moved its embassy to Jerusalem as well, but Paraguayan President Mario Abdo later reversed the previous administration’s decision and said his country’s embassy would move back to Tel Aviv.
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Romania, Moldova, and Honduras both announced plans to relocate their countries’ embassies in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, though Honduras has since said it is considering moving the embassy back to Tel Aviv.
Hungary, meanwhile, opened a trade office in western Jerusalem in 2019.
Content retrieved from: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/360753.