We are concerned with the statements of President Trump on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and on the status of Jerusalem at his joint press conference with Prime Minister Netanyahu of Israel in Davos on 25 January 2018.

These statements show how aloof the U.S. President and his entourage are from the realities of the region and the dynamics of the conflict.

The final status of Jerusalem has been unequivocally among the most fundamental components of the peace process towards the comprehensive, just and lasting settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict from the outset. The established parameters of the international community with regards to the settlement process cannot be amended by the U.S. Administration through a unilateral decision which contravenes the international law, primarily UN Security Council and General Assembly Resolutions, and which, as a matter of fact, has already been rejected by the international community.

By the same token, it is obvious that one cannot contribute to the resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict by fulfilling the demands and expectations of only one of the parties to the conflict, while isolating and even punishing the other. Such a shallow and short-sighted frame of mind cannot be expected to act as a mediator on an issue which directly pertains to peace and stability in the Middle East.

We call on the United States, as a matter of urgency, to respect the strong determination of the international community on this matter, particularly the resolutions of the UN Security Council, of which it is a permanent member.