EU SUPPORTS EAST JERUSALEM AS CAPITAL OF PALESTINE

But, no recognition of statehood, say senior diplomats

BRUSSELS ministers, Abbas repeated his call for East Jerusalem as capital while he urged EU governments 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 US Vice-President Mike Pence’s visit to the city yesterday, his presence at the EU headquarters here was seized on by European officials as a chance to restate opposition to Trump’s Dec 6 decision to move the US embassy to Jerusalem.

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 twostate solution with Jerusalem as the shared capital of the two states,” Mogherini said.

German Deputy Foreign Minister Michael Roth said Trump’s decision had made peace talks harder, but said all sides needed to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Abbas also struck a more diplomatic tone than in his recent public remarks, including earlier this month when he said he would only accept a broad, internationally-backed panel to broker any peace talks with Israel.

“We are keen on continuing negotiations. We are determined to reunite our people and our land,” Abbas said.

But his call for the EU to immediately and officially recognise the state of Palestine was unlikely to be answered, two senior EU diplomats said.

While nine EU governments, including Sweden and Poland, already recognise Palestine, the 28-nation bloc said such recognition must come as part of a peace settlement.

That reflects EU’s dual role as the Palestinians’ biggest aid donor and Israel’s biggest trade partner. Reuters