TODAY: Fifth Anniversary of Historic Embassy Move in Israel

TODAY: Fifth Anniversary of Historic Embassy Move in Israel

Today marks five years since President Donald J. Trump announced that, in recognition of Jerusalem as the true capital of Israel, the United States would move its embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

Our Take:

On Dec. 6, 2017, President Trump did what many previous presidents promised to do – but never did – and relocated the U.S. embassy in Israel to Jerusalem, the nation’s true capital.

While in office, President Trump repeatedly took bold actions to strengthen Israel and deepen our vital alliance. With Joe Biden, however, Israel’s enemies are increasingly empowered, threatening peace in the Middle East and around the globe. 

• President Trump acknowledged Israel’s sovereignty over the Golan Heights and declared that Israeli settlements in the West Bank are not inconsistent with international law.
• The Trump Administration negotiated the historic Abraham Accords, which enhanced Israel’s security and prosperity, and created opportunities for the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco, Sudan and Kosovo. These countries strengthened their economic and cultural ties with Israel.
• Joe Biden reversed the Trump Administration’s actions taken against the Palestinian Authority. President Trump previously cut diplomatic ties and halted funding over the Palestinian Authority’s payments to terrorists and their families.
• President Trump withdrew the United States from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, or the Iran Nuclear Deal, which failed to seriously address the threats posed by Iran to peace in the Middle East.
• Joe Biden empowered the Iranian Regime by resuming nuclear deal discussions, which would allow Tehran access to $274 billion in the first year the deal goes into effect. By 2030, Iran would have access to $1 trillion.

The Background: 

Every president since the passage of the Jerusalem Embassy Act of 1995 failed to fulfill America’s promise to cement the recognition of Jerusalem as the true capital of Israel and move the U.S. embassy. President Trump swore to fix that. On Dec. 6, 2017, he issued a presidential proclamation recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and announcing the relocation of the U.S. embassy. 

Keeping his promise to move the embassy to Jerusalem was just one aspect of President Trump’s pro-Israel strategy. 

The Abraham Accords solidified diplomatic relationships between Israel and countries like the U.A.E., Bahrain, Sudan, and Morocco. President Trump further strengthened Israeli sovereignty by recognizing that the Golan Heights are part of the State of Israel. He also declared that Israeli settlements did not violate international law. Under the Trump Administration, the United States withdrew from the UN Human Rights Council due to the group’s blatant anti-Israel bias.

President Trump stood firm against Israel’s – and our – adversaries in the region. He also signed into law the Taylor Force Act, which cut U.S. funding to the Palestinian Authority over their payments to terrorists and the families of dead terrorists. The Trump Administration withdrew the U.S. from the disastrous Iran Nuclear Deal and imposed crippling sanctions on Iran. These sanctions devastated Iranian oil exports and reduced them by almost 90 percent, denying the regime its primary funding source. 

Thanks to Joe Biden’s weak leadership, Israel now faces increased threats to its right to exist from newly empowered rivals. 

Joe Biden restored payments to the Palestinian Authority, reversing President Trump’s decision. In July 2022, the White House announced that they would send them an additional $316 million in taxpayer dollars. This is “on top of the more than half a billion dollars the United States has provided” since Biden took office. Biden also resumed nuclear deal discussions with Iran. Re-engaging this deal would allow Tehran access to $274 billion during the first year it goes into effect and at least $1 trillion by 2030. 

Biden is emboldening our, and Israel’s, enemies. 

In recognition of President Trump’s historic achievements to strengthen the relationship between the United States and Israel, The Zionist Organization of America recently awarded him with their highest honor, the Theodor Herzl Medallion.

Morton Klein, the president of the ZOA, called President Trump “the greatest friend Israel has ever had in the White House,” and thanked him for being “the first U.S. president, ever to pray at the holy Western Wall.” 

“You deserve, unquestionably, the Nobel Peace Prize for your extraordinary work,” Klein stated in his introduction of President Trump. 

“Today, the State of Israel stands as a living tribute to the unbreakable spirit of the Israeli people and the glory of Almighty God,” President Trump told those gathered at the ZOA’s 125th anniversary gala in November. “The U.S. and Israel,” he continued, “are not just allies on a military basis but economically and politically. We are allies morally, culturally, and spiritually, and we always will be— at least if I have anything to do with it.”