Netanyahu will seek US recognition of the annexation of Jordan Valley

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he intends to seek recognition by Washington of the extension of Israeli sovereignty to the Jordan Valley.  He made a statement on Sunday at the Makor Rishon newspaper conference in Jerusalem.

 "I want to achieve Americans' recognition of our Israeli sovereignty over the Jordan Valley," said the prime minister,  "I think the time has come to extend the sovereignty of Israel to the Jordan Valley and to regulate the status of all Jewish settlements in Judea and Samaria, both located inside large settlement blocks and located outside them.  They will all become part of the State of Israel, "he added.

 According to Netanyahu, at the moment there is "the opportunity to define the eastern border of Israel and extend Israeli sovereignty to the Jordan Valley with the recognition of this step by the United States."  The prime minister also said that he was discussing the annexation of settlements on December 5 with US Secretary of State Michael Pompeo in Lisbon, thereby refuting the State Department’s allegations.  "There was a statement of the State Department that this issue was not raised at the meeting with Pompeo, but it was raised. No, they said that the formal plan was not discussed - that’s true, but the problem itself was discussed," the head of the Israeli cabinet said.

 Netanyahu discussed plans to extend Israeli sovereignty to Jewish settlements in the West Bank in the Jordan Valley region with U.S. President Donald Trump over the phone on December 1.  On December 2, the prime minister announced at a weekly meeting of the Israeli government that it was about "historic opportunities in the coming months, including the Jordan Valley as Israel’s recognized eastern border."

 Pompeo announced on November 18 that Washington no longer believed that Jewish settlements on the West Bank were violating international law.  The next day, Netanyahu approved a bill that, after parliamentary approval, will extend Israeli sovereignty to the Jordan Valley and the northern tip of the Dead Sea.  In response to a Pompeo statement, the Palestinian side stated that the US administration was not authorized to repeal international resolutions relating to settlements.

 In December 2016, the UN Security Council adopted resolution 2334 demanding an end to Israeli settlement activities in the occupied territories.  Israel then stated that it would not comply with the provisions of this document.