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Trump says would ‘recognize Jerusalem’ as Israeli capital

Sunday, 25 September 2016 7:58 PM [ Last Update: Monday, 26 September 2016 6:05 AM ]

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (R) and Republican nominee Donald Trump shake hands during a meeting at the Trump Tower in New York on September 25, 2016. (photo via @IsraeliPM)

Republican nominee Donald Trump promises Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to "recognize Jerusalem as the undivided capital of the state of Israel" if he emerges victor in the US 2016 presidential election.

The meeting at the Trump Tower in Manhattan, New York, on Sunday took nearly 90 minutes as Trump's son-in-law and a close adviser, Jared Kushner, was on hand for the meeting along with Israeli ambassador to the US Ron Dermer.

“A Trump administration would finally accept the long-standing Congressional mandate to recognize Jerusalem as the undivided capital of the state of Israel," the Trump campaign said in a press release.

The two talked about “the special relationship between America and Israel and the unbreakable bond between the two countries.”

Trump asserted that the US military aid to Israeli missile system is “an excellent investment for America,” further calling Tel Aviv a “vital partner” in the war against “Islamic terrorism,” from which the Israelis have “suffered far too long.”

On the agenda at the meeting was also the nuclear deal between Iran and the world powers, including the United States.

Trump described East Jerusalem al-Quds, occupied by Israel since 1967, as “the eternal capital of the Jewish people.”

His statement was devoid of any reference to Israel’s heavy-handed crackdown in Palestine or even the so-called two–state solution, pursued in the foreign policy of the administration of President Barack Obama.

Israeli security forces stand guard on a road in the occupied southern West Bank at the entrance of the Israeli illegal settlement of Kiryat Arba, on September 23, 2016.(photo by AFP)

"The meeting concluded with both leaders promising the highest level of mutual support and cooperation should Mr. Trump have the honor and privilege of being elected president of the United States," concluded the statement.

East Jerusalem al-Quds was occupied in 1967 and Israel later annexed it heedless of international condemnations.

The Palestinian Authority, which administers the occupied West Bank, views the city as the capital of its future state. Palestinians have also resisted numerous Israeli plans for exerting full control over the territory.

The meeting came as Trump was preparing to appear in the first national debate with Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton, who was also scheduled to meet Bibi later in the day.

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