Australia announced Tuesday that it has decided to stop recognizing West Jerusalem as the capital of the State of Israel, thus reversing a decision made by the previous Conservative government.
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said that the issue of the status of Jerusalem must be resolved through peace negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian people and not through unilateral decisions.
“We will not support an approach that undermines that perspective,” he said, adding that “the Australian Embassy has always been and remains in Tel Aviv.”
“Disorder within part of the Australian community”
The previous Conservative government of Scott Morrison came under heavy criticism when, in 2018, it announced that it was recognizing West Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. He made the announcement on the heels of a similar decision by US President Donald Trump.
“I know this has caused conflict and disorder in parts of the Australian community, and today the government is looking to resolve this,” said Penny Wong.
He accused his predecessor’s government of making the decision at the time to try to win a crucial by-election in a Sydney suburb with a large Jewish community. “Do you know what it was? It was a cynical and unsuccessful game to win the Wentworth seat and a by-election.”
The 2018 decision also caused consternation in neighboring Indonesia (the world’s most Muslim country) by temporarily derailing a free trade agreement.
Source: BFM TV
