Thank you, Mr. President.
Wednesday’s declaration marks a milestone – for Israel, for peace and for the world.
The United States had the courage, leadership and true understanding of justice to officially state what has always been known.
That Jerusalem has and always will be the capital of Israel.
And the embassy of the United States to Israel belongs in Israel’s capital.
For that I thank President Trump, Vice President Pence, Ambassador Haley and the American people.
The Jewish people are an ancient nation.
Three thousand years ago, King David declared the city of Jerusalem the capital of the Jewish people.
Jerusalem, ציון, in Hebrew, appears in the bible six-hundred sixty (660) times. It is the centerpiece of our vibrant Jewish history.
Three times a day, Jews face toward Jerusalem to pray. At every birth, at every wedding, we remember Jerusalem.
I have here a replica of an ancient coin, found on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. It is dated from the year sixty-seven (67) A.D., during the time of the second Jewish Temple.
The words “ירושלים הקדושה” – “Jerusalem the Holy,” are written on this coin.
Only three years later, in the year 70 A.D., would our holy temple be destroyed, and the Jewish people sent into exile for two thousand years.
Nearly seventy years ago this week, shortly after Israel declared independence, Prime Minister David Ben Gurion made a timeless affirmation. He said, and I quote, “Jerusalem is an inseparable part of Israel and her eternal capital. No United Nations vote can alter that historic fact.”
It was an important message. One that the world too often seems to forget.
Last year, in this very same room – we were here all of us, almost all of us – the Security Council passed the shameful resolution 2334. This Council had the audacity – the chutzpah – to say that Israel’s presence at the Western Wall in Jerusalem has, and I quote, “no legal validity and constitutes a flagrant violation under international law.”
Then, in May 2017, UNESCO, the organization responsible for preserving cultural heritage, passed a resolution declaring that Israel has no legal or historical rights anywhere in Jerusalem.
It was one historical wrong after another.
That is why President Trump’s decision was so important. The United States had the courage, and the sound moral judgment, to right these historic wrongs. They recognized Jerusalem as the capital of the State of Israel.
Middle Eastern capitals are not known for tolerance. They are not known for freedom of religion.
But not in Israel. Jerusalem under a sovereign Israel is more free and more open to people of all religions than at any other time in history.
In Jerusalem, all people, of all faiths, practice their religions freely. They are never under threat for praying at their holy sites.
These values are enshrined in our Declaration of Independence – the founding document of our state.
We pledged and I quote, to “safeguard the Holy Places of all religions.” We have always known that Jerusalem is holy for others too.
From the moment of our founding, we vowed to create a State that would honor that holiness. A democracy that would respect and value the traditions of all people.
That has never changed. That will never change. Not this past week. Not tomorrow. Not ever.
The announcement on Wednesday revealed a sad truth about some people around the world. The people who threaten to ignite a wave of violence against Israel and Jews everywhere. The people who may claim they want peace, but whose actions speak louder than their words.
That is why today, every member of this Council must send a clear message.
There is never an excuse for violence.
Violence must never be used as a threat.
Mr. President,
We have heard these threats before.
In 1948, when Israel was declared, US President Harry Truman was warned not to recognize us. People said such recognition would spark terrible violence around the world.
But President Truman stood strong, just as President Trump did this week. They made the right decision.
The Palestinians now have a decision to make.
They can choose violence, as they’ve always done – and as we speak, we’ve received reports about rockets flying from Gaza into Israel.
Or they can choose to join us at the negotiating table. They can meet us to talk – in Ramallah, in Jerusalem, or anywhere in the world.
I sincerely hope they make the right decision.
The American announcement should also serve as a reality check for the nations of the world. They can see this moment for what it is – an opportunity to initiate hope.
They can realize what has always been true. That recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital is a critical and necessary step for peace.
They can learn that there will never be peace without Jerusalem as the capital of the State of Israel.
That is why, today, I call on all countries – all peace-seeking nations of the world – to join with our American friends.
Recognize Jerusalem’s connection to Israel and move your embassies to our capital. Understand that this declaration is a positive step for our children. For our future.
Do this, because it is simply the right thing to do.
Mr. President,
Twice a year, Jews all over the world conclude two of our major holidays Yom Kippur and Passover, with a prayer. That prayer calls for, quote “next year in Jerusalem”
Seventy years ago, the Jewish people came home to Jerusalem.
We are grateful to the United States for their courageous decision. We call on all the nations of the world to join us, “this year in Jerusalem,” the capital of the State of Israel.
לשנה הבא בירושלים הבנויה
I thank you, Mr. President.