A concurrent resolution to express the sense of Congress in opposition to the establishment of a new Palestinian consulate or diplomatic mission in Jerusalem.

Bill: 117-sconres-34
Sponsor: full_name: Sen. Lee, Mike [R-UT]
Introduced: 2022-03-22
Policy area: International Affairs
Latest action: action_date: 2022-03-22
text: Referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations. (text: CR S1292)

Summaries:
action_date: 2022-03-22
action_desc: Introduced in Senate
text: <p>This concurrent resolution expresses the sense of Congress that (1) it opposes the establishment of a new Palestinian consulate in Jerusalem, (2) any establishment of a new consulate or diplomatic mission in Jerusalem should not move forward without congressional approval through the passage of new legislation, and (3) the presence of a United States diplomatic mission devoted to a non-state actor in Israel's sovereign capital would be an affront to the territorial integrity of a long-standing U.S. partner and ally.</p>

tv_txt: III 117th CONGRESS 2d Session S. CON. RES. 34 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES March 22, 2022 Mr. Lee (for himself, Mr. Cassidy , Mr. Braun , Mr. Scott of Florida , Mrs. Hyde-Smith , Ms. Ernst , Mr. Daines , Mr. Cramer , Mr. Marshall , Mr. Hoeven , Mrs. Blackburn , and Mr. Boozman ) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations CONCURRENT RESOLUTION To express the sense of Congress in opposition to the establishment of a new Palestinian consulate or diplomatic mission in Jerusalem.

Whereas the United States recognizes sovereign nations’ authority to designate their own capitals; Whereas Jerusalem has served as the diplomatic capital of Israel for decades and has remained the cultural center of Israel and of the Jewish people for millennia; Whereas large, bipartisan supermajorities in the Senate and the House of Representatives voted for the Jerusalem Embassy Act of 1995 ( Public Law 104–45 ), which states, as the policy of the United States— (1) Jerusalem should remain an undivided city ; (2) Jerusalem should be recognized as the capital of the State of Israel ; and (3) the United States Embassy in Israel should be established in Jerusalem ; Whereas, in 2018, the Trump administration relocated the United States Embassy in Israel to Jerusalem in accordance with the Jerusalem Embassy Act of 1995; Whereas the Biden administration’s plan to open a Palestinian consulate in Jerusalem could be viewed as a challenge to— (1) Israel’s sovereignty over Jerusalem; and (2) Jerusalem’s status as an undivided city; Whereas such plan has received bipartisan criticism among members of the Government of the United States and the Government of Israel; Whereas the United States Embassy in Jerusalem’s Palestinian Affairs Unit already manages, in a timely and effective manner, the proposed responsibilities of the Biden administration’s planned Palestinian consulate in Jerusalem; and Whereas the opening and maintenance of a new and unnecessary consulate in Jerusalem would require a substantial expenditure of American taxpayer funds: Now, therefore, be it

That it is the sense of Congress that— (1) Congress opposes the establishment of a new Palestinian consulate in Jerusalem; (2) establishing such a consulate would violate the intent of the Jerusalem Embassy Act of 1995; (3) any establishment of a new consulate or diplomatic mission in Jerusalem should not move forward without congressional approval through the passage of new legislation; and (4) the presence of a United States diplomatic mission devoted to a non-state actor in Israel’s sovereign capital would be an affront to the territorial integrity of a long-standing United States partner and ally.