A senior Israeli official said that Lapid had been hopeful that Truss would indeed move forward on the matter.
https://www.jpost.com-By TOVAH LAZAROFF
Prime Minister Yair Lapid with British coutnerpart Liz Truss in New York on September 21, 2022 (credit: Avi Ohayon/GPO)
The United Kingdom is considering relocating its embassy to Jerusalem, British Prime Minister Liz Truss told her Israeli counterpart when the two leaders met on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.
The matter was confirmed by a Downing Street spokesperson who said that Truss spoke with Lapid about her “review of the current location of the British Embassy in Israel,” according to a report in the Telegraph.
Israel has not commented on the report. Prior to their meeting, a senior Israeli official said that Lapid had been hopeful that Truss would indeed move forward on the matter and that he planned to raise the issue with her.
Truss, who became Prime Minister only this month told the Conservative Friends of Israel in August that she would consider such a move if she entered Downing Street.
The move would mark a sea change in British foreign policy with regard to Jerusalem. The international community has been loath to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital until such time as there is a two-state resolution to the conflict. Most foreign embassies to Israel are located in Tel Aviv.
Former US president Donald Trump moved to strengthen Israel’s connection to its capital city of Jerusalem when he relocated his country’s embassy there. Only Guatemala, Honduras and Kosovo have followed suit.
The British relocation of its embassy would be particularly significant because Great Britain is a world power.
Lapid also spoke with Truss about Iran. He urged her to abandon the defunct Iran deal and to begin talks with Tehran for a better agreement that would prevent the Islamic Republic from becoming a nuclear state.