Erdogan: Turkey seeking UN annulment of Trump decision on Jerusalem
ANKARA (Reuters) – Turkey is launching an initiative at the United Nations to annul the decision by the United States to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday.
Erdogan was speaking two days after a Muslim leaders meeting in Istanbul condemned US President Donald Trump’s decision, calling on the world to respond by recognizing east Jerusalem as the capital of “Palestine.”
“We will work for the annulment of this unjust decision firstly at the UN Security Council, and if a veto comes from there, the General Assembly,” Erdogan told crowds gathered in the central Anatolian city of Konya via teleconference.
The United States is a permanent Security Council member with veto powers, meaning any move to overturn Washington’s decision at the council would certainly be blocked.
Trump’s decision broke with decades of US policy and international consensus that the city’s status must be left to Israeli-Palestinian talks, leading to harsh criticisms from Muslim countries and Israel’s closest European allies, who have also rejected the move.
A communiqué issued after Wednesday’s summit of more than 50 Muslim countries, including US allies, said they considered Trump’s move to be a declaration that Washington was withdrawing from its role “as sponsor of peace” in the Middle East.
Asked about the criticism during an interview with Israel’s Makor Rishon daily, David Friedman, the US ambassador to Israel, said Trump had done “what is good for America.”
“President Trump... does not intend to reverse himself, despite the various condemnations and declarations,” he said.