A US State Department official said today, Saturday, that Washington has not changed its position on the issue of Israel’s annexation of West Bank settlements, in a move that confirms the absolute support that America gives to Israel.
David Schenker, US Assistant Secretary of State for Middle East Affairs, made the comments in response to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's visit to Israel on Wednesday, the first since the start of the Corona virus crisis.
"President (Donald Trump) has charted a path of peace - referring to the American peace plan known as the" deal of the century "- and we expect direct talks between Israel and the Palestinians," Schenker said.
Schenker declined to clarify whether Pompeo would give Israel a "green light" to start annexing the settlements, adding that work on the joint mapping committee was still going on.
On Friday evening, a US State Department statement said Pompeo would visit Israel on May 13.
The statement pointed out that Pompeo will discuss with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Benny Gantz, leader of the "Blue and White" party, Speaker of the Knesset, regional security issues, and Tel Aviv's fight against the Corona virus.
The statement stressed that under President Trump's administration, the United States has become "the strongest ally" of Israel, without giving further details.
Last Wednesday, the American ambassador to Israel David Friedman announced that his country is ready to recognize Tel Aviv's sovereignty over West Bank settlements in the coming weeks.
Friedman said in an interview with the Hebrew newspaper "Israel Today" that Washington "is not planning to impose any new conditions on this step," but called for the completion of "many operations before it."
Netanyahu had agreed with Gantz that the annexation process would start in early July, and would include the Jordan Valley and all Israeli settlements in the West Bank.
An Israeli-American committee is working to map the areas that will be annexed by Tel Aviv in the West Bank, and which the United States will recognize.
Palestinian estimates indicate that the Israeli annexation will reach more than 30% of the area of the West Bank.
The Palestinians have repeatedly warned that the annexation would undermine the idea of a two-state solution from the ground up, and could cause unpopular popular resistance.