U.S. Embassy's move to Jerusalem should take at least two years, Tillerson says
Source: The Washington Post
By Carol Morello December 8 at 10:28 AM
PARIS — Middle East politics dominated Secretary of State Rex Tillerson’s agenda on Friday: He met with the Lebanese prime minister who took back his resignation, listened to allies criticize the administration’s Jerusalem decision and chided Saudi Arabia to be more “measured” and “thoughtful” in waging war in Yemen.
After a day of talks, in which every leader who appeared publicly with Tillerson expressed opposition to President Trump’s decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, the secretary predicted it will take two years or longer before the U.S. Embassy can be physically relocated from Tel Aviv.
“This is not something that is going to happen this year, or probably not next year,” Tillerson said at a news conference with French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, citing the need to find an appropriate site, draw up building plans and get permits. “But the president does want us to move in a very concrete, very steadfast way.”
Moments later, Le Drian cited the Jerusalem decision, which has sparked waves of protest across the Middle East, as one of the major issues on which the French disagree with their U.S. allies.
Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/tillerson-us-embassy-move-to-jerusalem-should-take-at-least-two-years/2017/12/08/83ec13ac-7170-4058-9972-11d4a8e8cc18_story.html?tid=sm_tw&utm_term=.0e3962a43960