Australia has reversed a four-year-old decision to recognize West Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
Foreign Minister Penny Wong stated that Canberra’s action in 2018 had harmed peace and put Australia out of step with other nations.
She emphasized that Australia remained Israel’s “steadfast friend.” It will maintain its embassy in Tel Aviv.
The status of Jerusalem is one of Israel’s and the Palestinians’ most contentious issues.
Prime Minister of Israel Yair Lapid stated, “Given how this decision was made in Australia, as a rushed reaction to a false media claim, we can only hope that the Australian administration handles other things with more seriousness and professionalism.
Nothing will ever change the fact that Jerusalem is the eternal and unified capital of Israel.
Former US President Donald Trump sparked widespread condemnation in 2017 when he reversed decades of American foreign policy by recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. The US embassy was relocated to Jerusalem from Tel Aviv in May 2018.
A few months later, the then-prime minister of Australia, Scott Morrison, declared that his government will follow suit.
Mr. Morrison stated at the time that Australia would instantly recognize West Jerusalem but would not relocate its embassy from Tel Aviv until a peace agreement was reached.
In May of this year, Mr. Morrison’s administration lost power in an election.
Tuesday, Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong referred to the former government’s action as a “cynical ploy” to win over Jewish voters before an upcoming election.
She stated, “I regret that Mr. Morrison’s decision to play politics has resulted in Australia’s shifting attitude and the sorrow that these shifts have caused too many Australians who care profoundly about this subject.
She restated the nation’s “prior and longstanding” position that the status of Jerusalem should be determined as part of Israeli-Palestinian peace discussions.
Honduras, Guatemala, and Kosovo are the only countries outside the United States that have embassies in Jerusalem.
While Israel considers Jerusalem to be its “eternal and undivided” capital, the Palestinians view East Jerusalem, which Israel conquered during the 1967 Middle East War, as the eventual capital of their future state.
Jerusalem’s status is at the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
The international community has never recognized Israeli sovereignty over Jerusalem, and according to the Israel-Palestinian peace accords of 1993, the final status of Jerusalem is to be determined during the last phases of peace discussions.
