WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump’s decision Wednesday to recognise Jerusalem as Israel’s capital could temporarily derail the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, two senior White House officials acknowledged after Trump’s speech. Pretty sure it will be temporary,” a senior White House official told CNN and acknowledged that the president’s peace team has not spoken with furious Palestinian officials since the Trump’s announcement. That “derailment” was a cost the White House was prepared to accept to fulfill Trump’s campaign promise. And two senior White House officials said they felt making the announcement now — before Israelis and Palestinians have reached the negotiating table — would help mitigate the damage to the peace process. And while senior administration officials have expressed hope that the move could help facilitate the peace process, two senior White House officials acknowledged Wednesday that that was not a central goal.

Source: Pakistan Today December 07, 2017 03:56 UTC