Netanyahu asked Trump to slow down embassy move

Jerusalem, 29 January, 2017 (TPS) -- Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu is behind the White House’s recent statement which indicated it would not, at least for now, expedite the relocation of the American embassy to Jerusalem.

According to Marc Zell, the Chairman of the GOP Israeli chapter, the White House issued the clarification that the move to relocate the embassy was still in very preliminary stages, shortly after the phone conversation between the PM and President Trump.

“According to my sources in the US, the decision to slow track the relocation of the embassy was taken following Netanyahu’s request”. “So far this administration has acted to expeditiously implement its campaign undertakings, and the only reason the embassy issue is not being similarly expedited is Netanyahu’s request”. “The fact that unlike all previous administrations, the Trump White House made no comment on Israel’s announcement it intended to build over 2,000 new homes in West Bank settlements shows the new wind blowing out of Washington is real, and not a passing breeze”.

No further developments regarding this issue are expected until the two men meet next month.

Today in cabinet Netanyahu said that the government’s position has always been that the US embassy, and for that matter all other embassies should be in Jerusalem, the country’s capital.

David Baker, Chief Foreign Press Spokesperson at the PM’s office said that he had nothing to add beyond the PM’s statement to cabinet this morning.

It is interesting to note that the one word conspicuously absent from the PM’s statement is ASAP.