U.S. Embassy In Jerusalem Will Open By End Of 2019, Pence Says In Israel

Vice President Mike Pence says the U.S. will complete the plan to move its embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem by the end of 2019, announcing a faster timeline for opening the embassy than had been previously reported. Pence announced the new deadline during his visit to Israel.

"In the weeks ahead, our administration will advance its plan to open the United States embassy in Jerusalem — and that United States embassy will open before the end of next year," Pence said.

Pence spoke in Israel's Knesset on Monday, after meeting with leaders in Egypt and Jordan over the weekend.

The vice president also spoke to reporters alongside Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu — whom he echoed when he called Jerusalem, the hotly contested city, "Israel's capital."

Netanyahu was clearly pleased by those remarks, NPR's Tamara Keith reports from Israel. But she added via Twitter that there were some signs of dissent when Pence spoke to the legislature.

"Members of the Knesset who stood and held signs in protest at the start of VP Pence's speech are ushered out," Tamara wrote, posting video of the scene showing several Israeli lawmakers being removed from the chamber.

President Trump announced in early December that the State Department would "begin preparation to move the American Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem," saying that he was delivering on a pledge to move the embassy. No country in the world currently has an embassy in the city.

Trump also recognized Jerusalem as Israel's capital — a move that other presidents had avoided for decades as they left the designation of the city to be decided in peace talks. Jerusalem is claimed as a capital by both Israelis and Palestinians. </s> US Vice President Mike Pence on Monday announced that his country's embassy in Jerusalem will open by the end of 2019. This despite worldwide condemnation of Trump administration's decision to shift the embassy from Tel Aviv.

The United Nations (UN) had voted 128-9 in December of last year to reject Donald Trump's decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital. The US President in a speech in Washington had opened a Pandora's box by announcing US recognition for Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. A decision which is expected to further inflame simmering ties between Israel and Palestine, the move was criticised the world over - forcing Trump to threaten to cut financial aid to countries which 'voted against American interest.'

Pence's recent announcement is expected to further infuriate the global community - especially Muslim countries that back Palestine's claims on Jerusalem, a city considered holy by Muslims, Christians and Jews.

What is also of possible concern is the US' blatant disregard for the UN resolution. Nikki Haley, US ambassador to the UN, had said after the voting last month that her country will carry on with plans of shifting its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. "America will put our embassy in Jerusalem. That is what American people want us to do. And it is the right thing to do. No vote in the United Nations will make any difference to that," she had said."But this vote will make a difference to how Americans look at the UN and how we look at countries who disrespect us in the UN."

India too was one of the 128 countries supporting the resolution to reject US decision on Jerusalem. However, Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu's visit to India earlier this month showcased solid ties between the two countries. </s> * US embassy move by end of 2019-Pence

JERUSALEM/BRUSSELS Jan 22 (Reuters) - In a fresh display of Western discord over Middle East peace efforts, the United States said on Monday its Israel embassy would move to Jerusalem by the end of 2019, while its European Union allies voiced support for East Jerusalem as capital of a Palestinian state.

Vice-President Mike Pence, visiting Jerusalem, announced the timing of the move in a speech to Israel’s parliament, earning applause from Israeli legislators but also stirring a brief protest by Israeli Arab lawmakers, who held signs reading “Jerusalem is the capital of Palestine”.

In Brussels, the EU’s foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini assured Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas at a meeting that the EU supported his ambition to have East Jerusalem as capital of a Palestinian state.

U.S. President Donald Trump suddenly reversed decades of U.S. policy in December when he recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, generating fury from Palestinians and the Arab world and concern among Washington’s western allies.

Trump’s move delighted Israel, Washington’s closest Middle East ally, but stirred disquiet from world powers including Russia and China who worry it would stoke regional tensions and further drive a wedge between Israel and the Palestinians.

Many countries believe Jerusalem should ultimately be shared between Israel and a future Palestinian state and so are unwilling to make decisions about recognition of its status before a comprehensive peace settlement is agreed. “In the weeks ahead, our administration will advance its plan to open the United States Embassy in Jerusalem – and that United States Embassy will open before the end of next year,” Pence, part-way through a Middle East tour, said.

“Jerusalem is Israel’s capital – and, as such, President Trump has directed the State Department to immediately begin preparations to move the United States Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.”

Palestinian chief negotiator Saeb Erekat said on Twitter that Pence’s speech showed the U.S. administration was part of the problem rather than the solution.

“The messianic discourse of Pence is a gift to extremists”, he wrote. “His message to the rest of the world is clear: violate international law and resolutions and the U.S. will reward you.”

Israeli analyst Amotz Asa-El told Reuters that Pence’s speech was important in a practical sense because it set a deadline for the move.

He added: “I think that he (Trump) is making it plain to the Palestinians that their policy of protestation - which was visible in the plenum with the Arab lawmakers, but even more importantly in Abbas’s absence and his journey to Brussels - that none of this is going to make America budge.”

In Gaza, Essam Abu Ibrahim, 28, a store owner, said: “It will not change the fact that Jerusalem is an occupied city and it will continue to be an occupied city after this decision.”

In Brussels, Abbas repeated his call for East Jerusalem as capital as he urged the EU member nations to recognise a state of Palestine immediately, arguing that this would not disrupt negotiations with Israel on a peace settlement for the region.

While Abbas made no reference to Trump’s move on Jerusalem or Pence’s visit to the city, his presence at the EU headquarters in Brussels was seized on by European officials as a chance to restate opposition to Trump’s Dec. 6 decision to move the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem.

Palestinians seek East Jerusalem, including the walled Old City with its holy sites, as the capital of their own future state. Israel, which annexed East Jerusalem after capturing it in 1967 in a move not internationally recognised, regards all of the city as its “eternal and indivisible capital”.

Mogherini, in what appeared to be a veiled reference to Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as capital of Israel, called on those involved in the process to speak and act “wisely”, with a sense of responsibility.

“I want to reassure President Abbas of the firm commitment of the European Union to the two-state solution with Jerusalem as the shared capital of the two states,” Mogherini said.

Before Abbas’ arrival, she was more outspoken, saying: “Clearly there is a problem with Jerusalem. That is a very diplomatic euphemism,” in reference to Trump’s position.

But Mogherini said she still wanted to work with the United States on Middle East peace talks and had discussed ways to restart them late last year with Pence and U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.

Pence, who visited Egypt and Jordan before travelling to Israel, said that with its policy shift on Jerusalem, “the United States has chosen fact over fiction - and fact is the only true foundation for a just and lasting peace”.

Pence, an evangelical Christian, drew parallels between Jewish history dating back to biblical times and the European pilgrims who founded the United States.

Welcoming Pence to the parliament, Netanyahu said he was the first U.S. vice president to have been accorded the honour.

Israel and the United States “are striving together to achieve a true peace, lasting peace, peace with all our neighbours, including the Palestinians,” Netanyahu said. </s> The United States will open its embassy in Jerusalem next year, ahead of schedule, Vice-President Mike Pence has said in an address to the Israeli parliament.

Pence defended Donald Trump’s December declaration recognising Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, which has been condemned by the Palestinians, their Arab allies, and much of the wider diplomatic community.

He said the US administration will advance its plan in the coming weeks and the embassy will open by the end of 2019. Previous estimates had said that the move would take three or four years.

Pence is the highest-level US official to visit the region since Trump promised to move the US embassy to the city, an announcement that prompted Palestinians to reject the US as a peace broker.

The Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, rescinded an invitation for Pence to visit the West Bank, following the declaration.

Arab politicians in Israel’s parliament were ejected from the house for heckling at the start of Pence’s speech. The main Arab party in the Israeli parliament warned ahead of time that it would boycott Pence.

The Knesset, which is accustomed to such high-profile visits, had added a new layer of security, and, besides the speaker and other dignitaries, politicians did not have direct access to Pence.

Ayman Odeh, leader of the Joint Arab List, said it was the party’s democratic right to boycott the speech by the US vice-president. In a tweet, he said the party would not provide a “silent backdrop” to a man he called a “dangerous racist”.

Netanyahu called the boycott a disgrace, and joined a standing ovation for Pence. </s> Transcript for Pence says US embassy in Jerusalem 'will open before the end of next year'

Members of The Knesset. Justices of the Supreme Court. Citizens of Israel. In the weeks ahead our administration will. Advance its plan to open the United States embassy in Jerusalem. And that United States embassy will open before the end of next year. Jerusalem is Israel's capital. And as such. President trump has directed the State Department. To immediately begin preparations to move the United States embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. </s> JERUSALEM (AP) — The Latest on Vice President Mike Pence's visit to Israel (all times local):

The Foreign Press Association in Israel is speaking out against an Israeli demand to strip-search a Finnish journalist covering the visit by Vice President Mike Pence.

The woman says she was taken behind a curtain on Monday at Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office, where she says she was questioned, patted down, and then asked to remove her bra for an inspection. She says she refused and was barred from covering the event.

The woman, who was born and raised in Finland, believes she was singled out because her father is Palestinian.

The FPA, which represents some 400 journalists working for international media in Israel and the Palestinian territories, accused Israel of ethnic profiling. It calls the Israeli practice of strip-searching journalists a "mark of shame" aimed at intimidating reporters.

Vice President Mike Pence says the "door's open" for the Palestinians to return to the negotiating table with Israel on a peace agreement.

Pence spoke to The Associated Press in an interview following his address to the Knesset on Monday. He says the U.S. is hopeful that the Palestinian Authority "will be encouraged to return to the table."

Palestinian leaders have assailed the U.S. for its decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, saying it is no longer impartial. They have rejected the U.S. role in future peace talks.

Pence says President Donald Trump made clear in December that the U.S. would respect "the status quo" with regard to holy sites and that boundaries in the Holy Land would be subject to negotiations.

The Palestinians have issued an angry reaction to Vice President Mike Pence's speech to the Israeli parliament, saying it was a "gift to extremists."

Saeb Erekat, the chief Palestinian negotiator, said Pence's speech on Monday "has proven that the U.S. administration is part of the problem rather than the solution."

Pence repeated the Trump administration's controversial decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital and said the American Embassy will be moved to the city next year, earlier than previously expected.

The U.S. decision upended decades of American policy, and the stance of the international community, that the fate of Jerusalem be settled through negotiations.

The Palestinians claim Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem as their capital and accuse the U.S. of siding with Israel on the most sensitive issue in their conflict.

Vice President Mike Pence is calling the Iranian nuclear deal a "disaster" and says the Trump administration will no longer certify it.

Instead, Pence told the Israeli parliament on Monday that the administration is "committed to enact effective and lasting restraints on Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile programs."

Pence has received a warm welcome in Israel, which has praised the American decision last month to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is among the fiercest opponents to the nuclear accord the Obama administration reached with Iran, saying it could pave a path for the Islamic Republic acquiring a nuclear weapon that could threaten Israel's existence.

Pence says that the deal is not fixed and that in the coming months, the United States will "withdraw from the deal."

Vice President Mike Pence is "strongly" urging the Palestinians to return to the negotiating table.

In a speech to the Israeli parliament, Pence said on Monday that "peace can only come through dialogue."

The Palestinians have angrily protested the U.S. decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital and say the U.S. cannot be trusted as a mediator. They have said they will reject any peace plan the Trump administration presents.

Pence told the parliament that Israel "can be confident" that the U.S will never compromise Israel's security.

Vice President Mike Pence says the United States will open its embassy in Jerusalem next year, ahead of schedule.

In an address to the Israeli parliament on Monday, Pence defended the controversial decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital, which has been condemned by the Palestinians and their Arab allies.

Pence says the administration will advance its plan in the coming weeks and the embassy will open by the end of 2019. Previous estimates had been the move would take three or four years.

The Palestinians claim Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem as their capital. They say the U.S. cannot be a mediator after the decision and have pre-emptively rejected any peace plan presented by the Trump administration.

Arab lawmakers in Israel's parliament have been tossed out from the house for heckling Vice President Mike Pence at the start of his speech.

The main Arab party in the Israeli parliament warned ahead of time it would boycott Pence on Monday.

The Knesset, which is accustomed to such high-profile visits, had added a new layer of security, and besides the speaker and other dignitaries, lawmakers did not have direct access to Pence.

Ayman Odeh, leader of the Joint Arab List, said it was the party's democratic right to boycott the speech by the U.S. vice president. In a tweet, he said the party will not provide a "silent backdrop" to a man he called a "dangerous racist."

Netanyahu called the boycott a disgrace. He and other gave Pence a standing ovation.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is thanking visiting Vice President Mike Pence for standing up for the "truth" and supporting Israel at the United Nations.

Netanyahu told Pence on Monday in a speech to parliament that President Donald Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as the country's capital will go down as one of the most historic in Israel's history.

Alternating between English and Hebrew, Netanyahu lauded the unbreakable alliance between the countries, saying they had a "shared destiny."

He said: "America has no greater friend than Israel, and Israel has no greater friend than the United States of America."

Pence has received a warm welcome in Israel, which has praised the American decision last month to recognize Jerusalem. The decision has infuriated the Palestinians and upset America's Arab allies as well.

Dozens of Palestinians are demonstrating in the West Bank city of Nablus against the visit of Vice President Mike Pence to Israel.

Protesters chanted against President Donald Trump and stepped on pictures of Pence in a sign of anger.

Some shouted: "Trump you are pig. May God demolish your home. How mean you are!"

The Palestinians are furious at Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital. The Palestinians seek east Jerusalem as their capital and accuse Trump of siding with Israel on the most sensitive issue in the conflict.

The Palestinians say the United States cannot be a mediator and have pre-emptively rejected any peace proposal the White House offers.

The Palestinians plan a mass strike on Tuesday against the Pence visit.

Vice President Mike Pence has arrived at Israel's parliament to deliver the keynote speech of his two-day visit that was part of a Mideast trip.

Pence signed the Knesset guest book on Monday and laid a wreath for the fallen soldier at its entrance plaza.

Pence has received a warm welcome in Israel, which has praised the American decision last month to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital. The decision has infuriated the Palestinians and upset America's Arab allies as well.

The main Arab party in the Israeli parliament said it will boycott Pence's speech — though it wasn't immediately clear whether they would walk out in protest, heckle or skip the session altogether.

Vice President Mike Pence has kicked off a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem.

Pence placed his right hand over his heart as an honor guard greeted him with the American national anthem.

White House Mideast envoy Jason Greenblatt, U.S. Ambassador David Friedman and the Israeli ambassador to Washington, Ron Dermer, joined Monday's ceremony before Pence and Netanyahu began their meeting.

Pence is receiving a warm welcome in Israel, which has praised the American decision last month to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital. The decision has infuriated the Palestinians and upset America's Arab allies as well.

Before Israel, Pence has visited Egypt and Jordan on the trip.

He is to deliver a speech to the Israeli Knesset, or parliament, later in the day.

Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. </s> JERUSALEM (AP) - Vice President Mike Pence kicked off his visit to Israel with a Monday morning meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in which he said it was an honor to be in "Israel's capital, Jerusalem."

Netanyahu told Pence it was the first time a visiting dignitary could utter those three words along with him, and he thanked Pence for President Donald Trump's "historic" recognition of Jerusalem. The Israeli leader also lauded the American-Israeli alliance, which he said has "never been stronger."

The brief exchange was part of an exceptionally warm welcome for Pence in Israel, which has praised the Trump administration's decision last month to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital. The decision, though, has infuriated the Palestinians, with whom Pence is not meeting, and upset America's Arab allies as well.

Pence placed his right hand over his heart as an honor guard greeted him with the American national anthem. White House Mideast envoy Jason Greenblatt, U.S. Ambassador David Friedman and the Israeli ambassador to Washington, Ron Dermer, joined the ceremony and Pence chatted briefly with Israeli soldiers before beginning his meeting with Netanyahu.

Pence said he was grateful to be representing Trump and that his decision to designate Jerusalem as the Israeli capital would "create an opportunity to move on in good faith negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority."

The vice president said he was hopeful "we are at the dawn of a new era of renewed discussions to achieve a peaceful resolution to a decades-long conflict."

Prior to his arrival, Pence visited Egypt and Jordan, where he was warned by King Abdullah II that he had to "rebuild trust and confidence" after the Jerusalem move.

Pence is set to deliver a speech to the Israeli Knesset, or parliament, later in the day.

After the Jerusalem announcement, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said he would not meet Trump administration officials and called off a meeting with Pence that had been scheduled for mid-December.

In a new expression of that snub, Abbas overlapped with Pence in Jordan from Saturday evening to midday Sunday, when the Palestinian leader flew to Brussels for a meeting with European Union foreign ministers. There, Abbas is expected to urge EU member states to recognize a state of Palestine in the pre-1967 war lines, and to step up involvement in mediation.

In Brussels, EU's top diplomat Federica Mogherini said the aim was "to support an international framework to accompany direct negotiations" despite the U.S. decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

Mogherini said "the only pragmatic, realistic solution for Jerusalem has to come through direct negotiations."

Nabil Abu Rdeneh, an Abbas adviser, reiterated that the United States "is no longer acceptable as a mediator" in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Netanyahu called Pence "a great friend of Israel" and said there was "no alternative for American leadership" in the peace process. "Whoever is not ready to talk with the Americans about peace - does not want peace," he said at a meeting of ambassadors in Jerusalem.

A small group of Palestinians in the West Bank town of Bethlehem protested Pence's arrival by burning posters with his image.

Meanwhile, the main Arab party in the Israeli parliament said it will boycott Pence's speech - though it wasn't immediately clear whether they will walk out on Pence in protest or skip the session altogether. The Knesset, which is accustomed to such high profile visits, has added a new layer of security, and other then the speaker and other dignitaries, lawmakers will not have direct access to Pence.

Ayman Odeh, leader of the Joint Arab List, said it was the party's democratic right to boycott the speech by the U.S. vice president. In a tweet, he said the party will not provide a "silent backdrop" to a man he called a "dangerous racist." </s> JERUSALEM/BRUSSELS (Reuters) - In a fresh display of Western discord over Middle East peace efforts, the United States said on Monday its Israel embassy would move to Jerusalem by the end of 2019, while its European Union allies voiced support for East Jerusalem as capital of a Palestinian state.

Vice-President Mike Pence, visiting Jerusalem, announced the timing of the move in a speech to Israel's parliament, earning applause from Israeli legislators but also stirring a brief protest by Israeli Arab lawmakers, who held signs reading "Jerusalem is the capital of Palestine".

In Brussels, the EU's foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini assured Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas at a meeting that the EU supported his ambition to have East Jerusalem as capital of a Palestinian state.

U.S. President Donald Trump suddenly reversed decades of U.S. policy in December when he recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, generating fury from Palestinians and the Arab world and concern among Washington’s western allies.

Trump's move delighted Israel, Washington's closest Middle East ally, but stirred disquiet from world powers including Russia and China who worry it would stoke regional tensions and further drive a wedge between Israel and the Palestinians.

Many countries believe Jerusalem should ultimately be shared between Israel and a future Palestinian state and so are unwilling to make decisions about recognition of its status before a comprehensive peace settlement is agreed.

"In the weeks ahead, our administration will advance its plan to open the United States Embassy in Jerusalem – and that United States Embassy will open before the end of next year," Pence, part-way through a Middle East tour, said.

"Jerusalem is Israel's capital – and, as such, President Trump has directed the State Department to immediately begin preparations to move the United States Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem."

Palestinian chief negotiator Saeb Erekat said on Twitter that Pence's speech showed the U.S. administration was part of the problem rather than the solution.

"The messianic discourse of Pence is a gift to extremists", he wrote. "His message to the rest of the world is clear: violate international law and resolutions and the U.S. will reward you."

Israeli analyst Amotz Asa-El told Reuters that Pence's speech was important in a practical sense because it set a deadline for the move.

He added: "I think that he (Trump) is making it plain to the Palestinians that their policy of protestation - which was visible in the plenum with the Arab lawmakers, but even more importantly in Abbas's absence and his journey to Brussels - that none of this is going to make America budge."

In Gaza, Essam Abu Ibrahim, 28, a store owner, said: "It will not change the fact that Jerusalem is an occupied city and it will continue to be an occupied city after this decision."

In Brussels, Abbas repeated his call for East Jerusalem as capital as he urged the EU member nations to recognize a state of Palestine immediately, arguing that this would not disrupt negotiations with Israel on a peace settlement for the region.

While Abbas made no reference to Trump's move on Jerusalem or Pence's visit to the city, his presence at the EU headquarters in Brussels was seized on by European officials as a chance to restate opposition to Trump's Dec. 6 decision to move the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem.

Palestinians seek East Jerusalem, including the walled Old City with its holy sites, as the capital of their own future state. Israel, which annexed East Jerusalem after capturing it in 1967 in a move not internationally recognized, regards all of the city as its "eternal and indivisible capital".

Mogherini, in what appeared to be a veiled reference to Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as capital of Israel, called on those involved in the process to speak and act "wisely", with a sense of responsibility.

"I want to reassure President Abbas of the firm commitment of the European Union to the two-state solution with Jerusalem as the shared capital of the two states," Mogherini said.

Before Abbas' arrival, she was more outspoken, saying: "Clearly there is a problem with Jerusalem. That is a very diplomatic euphemism," in reference to Trump's position.

But Mogherini said she still wanted to work with the United States on Middle East peace talks and had discussed ways to restart them late last year with Pence and U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.

Pence, who visited Egypt and Jordan before traveling to Israel, said that with its policy shift on Jerusalem, "the United States has chosen fact over fiction - and fact is the only true foundation for a just and lasting peace".

Pence, an evangelical Christian, drew parallels between Jewish history dating back to biblical times and the European pilgrims who founded the United States.

Welcoming Pence to the parliament, Netanyahu said he was the first U.S. vice president to have been accorded the honor.

Israel and the United States "are striving together to achieve a true peace, lasting peace, peace with all our neighbors, including the Palestinians," Netanyahu said. </s> JERUSALEM/BRUSSELS (Reuters) - In a fresh display of Western discord over Middle East peace efforts, the United States said on Monday its Israel embassy would move to Jerusalem by the end of 2019, while its European Union allies voiced support for East Jerusalem as capital of a Palestinian state.

Vice-President Mike Pence, visiting Jerusalem, announced the timing of the move in a speech to Israel’s parliament, earning applause from Israeli legislators but also stirring a brief protest by Israeli Arab lawmakers, who held signs reading “Jerusalem is the capital of Palestine”.

In Brussels, the EU’s foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini assured Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas at a meeting that the EU supported his ambition to have East Jerusalem as capital of a Palestinian state.

U.S. President Donald Trump suddenly reversed decades of U.S. policy in December when he recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, generating fury from Palestinians and the Arab world and concern among Washington’s western allies.

Trump’s move delighted Israel, Washington’s closest Middle East ally, but stirred disquiet from world powers including Russia and China who worry it would stoke regional tensions and further drive a wedge between Israel and the Palestinians.

Many countries believe Jerusalem should ultimately be shared between Israel and a future Palestinian state and so are unwilling to make decisions about recognition of its status before a comprehensive peace settlement is agreed.

“In the weeks ahead, our administration will advance its plan to open the United States Embassy in Jerusalem – and that United States Embassy will open before the end of next year,” Pence, part-way through a Middle East tour, said.

“Jerusalem is Israel’s capital – and, as such, President Trump has directed the State Department to immediately begin preparations to move the United States Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.”

Palestinian chief negotiator Saeb Erekat said on Twitter that Pence’s speech showed the U.S. administration was part of the problem rather than the solution.

“The messianic discourse of Pence is a gift to extremists”, he wrote. “His message to the rest of the world is clear: violate international law and resolutions and the U.S. will reward you.”

Israeli analyst Amotz Asa-El told Reuters that Pence’s speech was important in a practical sense because it set a deadline for the move.

He added: “I think that he (Trump) is making it plain to the Palestinians that their policy of protestation - which was visible in the plenum with the Arab lawmakers, but even more importantly in Abbas’s absence and his journey to Brussels - that none of this is going to make America budge.”

In Gaza, Essam Abu Ibrahim, 28, a store owner, said: “It will not change the fact that Jerusalem is an occupied city and it will continue to be an occupied city after this decision.”

In Brussels, Abbas repeated his call for East Jerusalem as capital as he urged the EU member nations to recognize a state of Palestine immediately, arguing that this would not disrupt negotiations with Israel on a peace settlement for the region.

While Abbas made no reference to Trump’s move on Jerusalem or Pence’s visit to the city, his presence at the EU headquarters in Brussels was seized on by European officials as a chance to restate opposition to Trump’s Dec. 6 decision to move the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem.

Palestinians seek East Jerusalem, including the walled Old City with its holy sites, as the capital of their own future state. Israel, which annexed East Jerusalem after capturing it in 1967 in a move not internationally recognized, regards all of the city as its “eternal and indivisible capital”.

Mogherini, in what appeared to be a veiled reference to Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as capital of Israel, called on those involved in the process to speak and act “wisely”, with a sense of responsibility.

“I want to reassure President Abbas of the firm commitment of the European Union to the two-state solution with Jerusalem as the shared capital of the two states,” Mogherini said.

Before Abbas’ arrival, she was more outspoken, saying: “Clearly there is a problem with Jerusalem. That is a very diplomatic euphemism,” in reference to Trump’s position.

But Mogherini said she still wanted to work with the United States on Middle East peace talks and had discussed ways to restart them late last year with Pence and U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.

Pence, who visited Egypt and Jordan before traveling to Israel, said that with its policy shift on Jerusalem, “the United States has chosen fact over fiction - and fact is the only true foundation for a just and lasting peace”.

Pence, an evangelical Christian, drew parallels between Jewish history dating back to biblical times and the European pilgrims who founded the United States.

Welcoming Pence to the parliament, Netanyahu said he was the first U.S. vice president to have been accorded the honor.

Israel and the United States “are striving together to achieve a true peace, lasting peace, peace with all our neighbors, including the Palestinians,” Netanyahu said.
U.S. Vice President Mike Pence declares during a speech in the Israeli parliament that the new U.S. embassy located in Jerusalem will open in 2019, sooner than generally expected.