Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Monday the US will soften its position on Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.
Pompeo said that establishment of settlements was not inconsistent with the law, and that President Trump would no longer abide by a 1978 State Department legal opinion that the settlements were “inconsistent with international law,” he said.
The move is likely to be welcomed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and to anger the Palestinians, as well as other countries seeking to resolve the Middle East conflict.
Pompeo’s remarks from the White House were the third major instance in which Team Trump had sided with Israel and against stances taken by the Palestinians and Arab states.
In 2017, Trump recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and, in 2018, the US formally opened an embassy in the city.
US policy had previously been that the status of Jerusalem was to be decided by the parties to the conflict.
And in March, Trump recognized Israel’s 1981 annexation of the Golan Heights in a boost for Netanyahu that prompted a sharp response from Syria, which once held the strategic land.
Trump’s move could help Netanyahu as he struggles to stay in power.
Israeli politics is deadlocked after two inconclusive elections this year. Former military chief Benny Gantz’s centrist Blue and White party emerged neck and neck with Netanyahu following a September vote, and both leaders have struggled to put together a ruling coalition.