President Donald Trump has temporarily waived a law requiring the U.S. to move its embassy in Israel to Jerusalem, but the White House said in a statement it’s not a question “if that move happens, but only when.”
Trump’s move to renew the waiver for six months keeps the U.S. embassy in Tel Aviv for now. Trump has said he’s reviewing whether to fulfil his campaign promise to move it to Jerusalem, comments that were welcomed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Trump was facing a Thursday deadline to renew the waiver or see the State Department lose half its funding for its overseas facilities.
Israel considers Jerusalem its capital, but the Palestinians claim east Jerusalem for the capital of a future state.
Congress passed the Jerusalem Embassy Act in 1995, but every president since has signed waivers to hold off moving the embassy.
The U.S. says its policy on Jerusalem hasn’t changed and that Jerusalem’s status must be negotiated between Israelis and Palestinians.
Trump visited Israel and the Palestinian territories last week, but did not mention a two-state solution in his speeches.
A White House statement on Thursday said Trump remains committed to moving the embassy, but that the delay is intended to “maximize the chances” of helping the two sides reach a peace deal.
“No one should consider this step to be in any way a retreat from the president’s strong support for Israel and for the United States-Israel alliance,” the statement read.
