Vice President Pence said Tuesday that President Trump is seriously considering moving the U.S. embassy in Israel to Jerusalem.
During a speech at an Israel Independence Day event at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, Pence said that the president is giving “serious consideration” to moving the U.S. embassy “as we speak.”
“Just look at the actions our President has taken since he took office,” Pence said, touting Trump’s nomination of lawyer David Friedman to be U.S. ambassador to Israel and Nikki Haley as ambassador to the United Nations.
“And the president of the United States, as we speak, is giving serious consideration into moving the American embassy in Tel Aviv to Jerusalem,” Pence said, according to a White House transcript.
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Trump has previously said that he would consider moving the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem. The U.S. and other countries have long maintained their diplomatic posts in Tel Aviv, and such a move to Jerusalem would likely draw international condemnation.
Trump demurred last week when asked if he might use a possible trip to Israel in May to announce the change in the embassy’s location.
“Ask me in a month on that,” he told Reuters.
During his speech Tuesday, Pence also underscored the U.S. military’s commitment to Israel and said that Trump is determined to resolve the Israeli and Palestinian conflict.
“Today, under President Donald Trump, America’s support for Israel’s security is at record levels. And in President Trump, America has a leader who will call our enemies by their name,” he said.
“To be clear, the president has also personally committed to resolving the Israeli and Palestinian conflict … While there will undoubtedly have to be compromises, you can rest assured President Donald Trump will never compromise the safety and security of the Jewish State of Israel — not now, not ever.”