Politics
Truss tells Lapid she's considering moving British Embassy to Jerusalem
The PM met her Israeli counterpart in New York at the UN General Assembly
September 22, 2022 12:28
The PM met her Israeli counterpart in New York at the UN General Assembly
September 22, 2022 12:28Liz Truss has confirmed to Israel’s Prime Minister, Yair Lapid, that she is considering moving the UK’s embassy to Jerusalem.
Her Downing Street spokesperson said she had reaffirmed her leadership campaign pledge to review the embassy’s location when she met Mr Lapid in New York last night during a visit to the UN General Assembly.
Mr Lapid duly tweeted praise to Ms Truss for considering the move, adding: “We will continue to strengthen the partnership between the countries.”
In 2017, then-US president Donald Trump broke with a longstanding agreement among the international community not to base embassies in Jerusalem until a two-state solution to the Israel-Palestine conflict had been reached.
Mr Trump announced that the US would move its embassy to Jerusalem and recognise it as Israel’s capital.
In response, the Palestinian Authority in Ramallah cut ties with the US, but the proposal did not trigger the level of unrest elsewhere in the Middle East that had been anticipated.
It was contentious because both Israel and the Palestinians consider Jerusalem to be their capital.
Ms Truss had previously told a Conservative Friends of Israel leadership contest event of her wish to “review” moving the British embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.
Downing Street confirmed that having met in New York, Ms Truss and her Israeli opposite number Mr Lapid “discussed the huge opportunities to boost cooperation between the UK and Israel on strategic priorities, including defence, cyber security, trade and green technology”.
The spokesperson added: “The prime minister informed Prime Minister Lapid about her review of the current location of the British Embassy in Israel.
“The prime minister welcomed progress on a new free trade agreement and reiterated the UK’s commitment to signing a high-ambition deal which delivers for the digital and services sectors.
“The prime minister also raised the importance of continued international unity in opposition to Russia’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, including on economic sanctions.
“Turning to recent events, she thanked Prime Minister Lapid for his kind condolences on the death of Her late Majesty the Queen, noting the close ties between British and Israeli people.”
During their discussion, Mr Lapid emphasised to his British counterpart “the necessity of avoiding further compromises with Iran”, a spokesperson for Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.
The Israeli spokesperson said: "[Mr Lapid] further emphasised that Israel’s expectation is the advancement of a longer and stronger deal that will provide a response to the full range of threats stemming from Iran. The leaders discussed the Middle East peace process and regional security, stressing the need for a long-term strategy to contain the threat from Iran.”