The vice president of the United States visited Egypt, Jordan, and Israel amid tensions over the recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of the Jewish state

The vice president of the United States, Mike Pence, concluded his tour of the Middle East; Pence visited Egypt, Jordan, and Israel. This visit, originally scheduled for December of last year, was postponed due to the decision made by Donald Trump to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

Despite the partial closure of the US’ government, the tour began on Saturday, January 20th, when Pence arrived in Cairo and met with Egyptian President Abdel Fatah al Sisi. According to the vice president's spokesperson, this tour is "fundamental to the national security and diplomatic objectives of the United States”.

Egypt

The most important topics were security and the fight against terrorism. Pence stressed that Trump is focusing his efforts on strengthening the relationship between both countries, which for a long time seemed to "be adrift". He also told Al Sisi that the US is "shoulder to shoulder […] with Egypt in the fight against terrorism".

Regarding the issue of Jerusalem, the Egyptian president categorized as a "disagreement among friends" the American decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and relocate its embassy from Tel Aviv.

Jordan

During his time in Jordan, Mike Pence met with King Abdullah II and discussed issues concerning the Arab-Israeli conflict. The king told the vice president that the US "must regain confidence" after the decision on Jerusalem. The monarch also requested that the United States "take the initiative and find the right way to move forward in these challenging circumstances."

Jordan defends a two-state solution to the conflict between the Palestinians and the Israelis, establishing the borders that existed between the two countries in 1967 and East Jerusalem being the future capital of Palestine. In the Six Day War of 1967, Israel occupied East Jerusalem, the Gaza Strip, the Golan Heights, and the Sinai Peninsula.

The presence of Pence in Jordan sparked protests in front of the US embassy in Amman, the capital of the Arab country.

Israel

On Sunday, Pence concluded his tour by visiting Israel, a key ally of the United States in the region. During his visit, he met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and gave a speech in parliament, the Knesset, where he reaffirmed that "Jerusalem is the capital of Israel." He also assured that the new US Embassy would be opening its doors at the end of 2019.

While saying that his country "has no intention of positioning itself on any final issue, including the specific borders of Israeli sovereignty in Jerusalem or the resolution of disputed border”, Pence also said that "any peace agreement has to guarantee the right of Israel to defend itself”.

The president of the Palestinian National Authority, Mahmud Abbas, rejected Pence's presence and called for new demonstrations around tensions over Jerusalem.  

Latin American Post | Iván Parada Hernández
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