Facing Deadline, Trump Still ‘Undecided’ on Jerusalem Embassy Move

Waiver Would Need to Be Signed by Thursday to Delay Process

Despite President Trump’s campaign pledge to move the US Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, and repeated official statements since then indicating that he doesn’t intend to do so for the foreseeable future, reports now indicate Trump is “undecided” on the move.

It’s a tough time to be “undecided” on the matter, because the Jerusalem Embassy Act only gives him until Thursday to sign a waiver that would delay the process. Absent such a waiver, the US government would be obliged by Congress to start implementing such a move.

The waiver is almost certainly coming, with all the recent reports suggesting Trump was concerned a move would hurt the peace process, and intending to delay the matter, at least for awhile. That he’s letting the clock tick down to the wire however is noteworthy, and raises questions about what will ultimately happen.

Passed in 1995, the Jerusalem Embassy Act requires a president to sign a waiver indicating the delay is on “national security” grounds if the embassy isn’t to be moved. Such a waiver has been offered semi-annually since then by every president, and like Trump, President Bush had promised to do it later in his term in office, but never ultimately did so.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.