Canberra: Australia has announced that it cannot recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. Four years ago, Australia announced that it would recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. In this case, Australia has reversed this decision.
Australia’s Foreign Minister Benny Wong said, “We withdraw the previous government’s decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. Jerusalem cannot be recognized as the capital of Israel and a solution must be reached through peace talks between Israelis and Palestinians. They should not be unilateral decisions.
We will not support decisions that block negotiations between the two countries. Australia’s foreign affairs office will continue to operate in Tel Aviv, Israel. Australia will always be a staunch friend of Israel. Australia is one of the countries that has formally recognized Israel. “We will support the Palestinian people on a humanitarian basis,” he said.
Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid said of the Australian decision, “Jerusalem is the unified capital of Israel. There is no change in this,” he said.
Former US President Donald Trump announced in 2017 that Jerusalem would continue to be Israel’s undivided capital. However, Israel and Palestine continue to claim Jerusalem. Due to this, many countries of the world do not recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.