On Wednesday, an Israeli diplomat told reporters the United States planning to reopen its Palestinian consulate in Jerusalem, traditionally a base for diplomatic outreach with Palestinians, could work against the new government in Israel under Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and would be a “bad idea.”
The Trump administration supported Israel’s claim of Jerusalem being its capital when it moved the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. The consulate was subsumed in west Jerusalem as part of the mission. This was one of many moves that incensed Palestinians wanting East Jerusalem as the capital of the future state they are hoping for.
President Biden would like to restore Palestinian ties with a two-state solution, moving forward with reopening the consulate. It’s been closed since 2019. The embassy has handled all Palestinian affairs.
When asked about the reopening, Foreign Minister Yair Lapid told reporters, “We think it’s a bad idea. Jerusalem is the sovereign capital of Israel and Israel alone, and therefore we don’t think it’s a good idea.”
He continued, “We know that the (Biden) administration has a different way of looking at this, but since it is happening in Israel, we are sure they are listening to us very carefully.”
A senior Palestine Liberation Organization official, Wasul Abu Youssef, told a Reuters reporter that they expected Israel to reject the opening of the consulate. ‘They are trying to maintain the status quo and block any political solution,” Youssef said.
When asked about the remarks made by Lapid, a spokesperson for the US. The embassy said, “As Secretary Blinken announced in May, the United States will be moving forward with the process to reopen our consulate in Jerusalem. We do not have additional information to share at this time.”
According to the spokesperson, the US is not going to reverse the decision to move the embassy to Jerusalem or recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. While the status is not acknowledged at an international level, Israel deems all of Jerusalem as its undivided capital. When the Trump administration recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital in 2017, Trump would not take a position on “any final-status issues, including the specific boundaries of the Israeli sovereignty in Jerusalem.”
Israel’s Feedback
Prime Minister Bennett is a nationalist sitting on top of a cross-partisan coalition, and he is opposed to Palestinian statehood. Lapid said Bennett’s government could be unsettled by the reopening of the consulate. He went on to say, “We have an interesting and yet delicate structure of our government, and we think this might destabilize this government, and I don’t think the American administration wants this to happen.”
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Lapid warned any divisions between Palestinians will create doubt about diplomatic prospects. “I am a devoted believer in the two-state solution, but we’ll have to admit the fact this is not feasible in the current situation.”
What this means for the United States
The US is just ending a 20-year war in Afghanistan. While I am personally all for the war coming to an end, I disagree with how everything happened. Yes, the war in Afghanistan is over. Still, there are things that need to be done, people that need to be brought home. Our focus needs to be on getting this accomplished.
Israel, on the other hand, has much more going on right now. They are also one of the only countries in the world not laughing too hard at the United States, not out loud anyway. They are an ally America needs. With everything the US has going on addressing getting the rest of our people out of Afghanistan, what business do we have right now making a decision as important as this?
There seems to be the start of a solid connection between the Biden and Bennett administrations. If they are telling us they don’t agree, why would we continue pursuing a “bad idea?” I think we have too many of those that need our attention right now.
Jeffrey Stevens is a Senior Writer with ThinkCivics News and a freelance journalist with The Jerusalem Post, focusing on the Vatican’s involvement in world politics. In addition, he is a published author and the founder of Gospel Grammar. Jeffrey is currently pursuing a second degree in theology from Aidan University in Jacksonville, Florida.
