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- Title
What is the significance of the Trump administration in recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's Capital?
- Authors
Fildis, Ayse Tekdal
- Abstract
In 1995, the US Congress passed a law requiring America to move the embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Proponents said the US should respect Israel's choice of Jerusalem as its capital, and recognize it as such. Since then Presidents Clinton, Bush and Obama has declined to move the embassy, citing national security interests. Every six months, the President has used the presidential waiver to circumvent the embassy move. President Trump campaigned on a promise to implement the act, on the 6th of December 2017 he formally recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, reversing nearly seven decades of American foreign policy and setting in motion a plan to move the United States Embassy from Tel Aviv to the fiercely contested Holy City. The status of Jerusalem remains a crucial issue in the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict, while some terms could be agreed upon, its status was always non-negotiable. When Trump moves the embassy to Jerusalem, it would effectively end the prospect of bringing peace and stability between Israelis and Palestinians. Trump's move to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital has been widely criticized in the US and abroad. There were those in the administration who pointed out that Trump's decision would make it harder to maintain coalitions against Islamist extremists and argued that it could put American lives in danger. The decision to move the embassy does not have substantial support across the US population. Some scholars and politicians have pointed out that the majority of Trumps support resonated with Evangelist and Conservative Jews which was a key factor the catalyst behind the controversial decision. Trump's Jerusalem declaration has been widely and enthusiastically welcomed by his religious supporters. He declared Jerusalem the capital of Israel because of the fear of losing the Evangelical voter base. There are no fewer than 50 million Evangelicals in America who, according to research, are convinced of the literal truth of Biblical prophecy. A recent survey found that 82 per cent of white Evangelicals believe that God gave Israel to the Jewish people. (Kim Sengupta, 8.12.2017, Independent) In this paper I will evaluate the significance of the Trump administration in having decided to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital, despite publicly voiced concerns from close US allies in the region and Europe.
- Subjects
JERUSALEM; UNITED States; PUBLIC administration; TRUMP, Donald, 1946-; UNITED States. Congress; CLINTON, Bill, 1946-; OBAMA, Barack, 1961-
- Publication
Balkan & Near Eastern Journal of Social Sciences (BNEJSS), 2018, Vol 4, Issue 3, p24
- ISSN
2149-9314
- Publication type
Article