Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took his case to Europe to ask allies to join the United States in recognizing Beit-ul-Moqaddas as Israel’s capital, but was met by a firm rebuff from EU foreign ministers who saw the move as a blow against the peace process.
After a breakfast meeting between Netanyahu and EU foreign ministers, Sweden’s top diplomat said no European at the closed-door meeting had voiced support for Trump’s decision, and no country was likely to follow the United States in announcing plans to move its embassy, Reuters reported.
“I have a hard time seeing that any other country would do that and I don’t think any other EU country will do it,” Margot Wallstrom told reporters.
Several EU foreign ministers arriving at the meeting reiterated the bloc’s position that lands Israel has occupied since the 1967 war —including East Beit-ul-Moqaddas as well as the West Bank and Golan Heights, are not within Israel’s borders.
European leaders say the decision on Israel’s capital makes the need for a broader peace move more urgent.
“We’ve been waiting already for several months for the American initiative, and if one is not forthcoming then the European Union will have to take the initiative,” French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said.
