The administration of U.S. President Donald trump expressed concerns about the construction of Israeli settlements in the occupied territories of the West Bank of the Jordan river. About it reports Reuters.
“Although we do not believe that the existence of Israeli settlements is an obstacle to the peace process, the construction of new or expansion of existing ones is unlikely to help in achieving peace,” reads the official statement of the White house.
According to the Agency, the tone of this document is discordant with previous Pro-Israel statements trump.
It is unclear how the White house announcement will affect the program for the construction of settlements. The permanent representative of Israel to the UN Danny Danon said: “it is too early to draw conclusions. I wouldn’t categorically say that we are dealing with a reversal of the US position 180 degrees, but the question obviously will be on the agenda during the meeting of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with President trump during his visit to Washington. We do not agree on all issues with the Americans.”
Wednesday, 1 February, Netanyahu announced the construction of three thousand homes in the West Bank of the Jordan river. A week earlier, the Israeli defense Ministry announced the construction of a 2.5 thousand housing units in the Palestinian territories.
Earlier, Netanyahu lifted a ban on construction of houses in East Jerusalem. “You don’t need to agree on the construction of Jewish neighborhoods. We will build where they want and how they want,” said he.
23 December 2016 the UN security Council demanded that Israel cease construction of settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories. The resolution was supported by all security Council members except the US, which abstained. Israel to implement this decision refused