The Trump administration on Friday reemphasized its opposition to Israel annexing the West Bank, but intentionally avoided condemning Jerusalem’s planned building of settlements in the controversial E1 area.
Asked for comment on the project, the State Department regurgitated a statement it has previously used regarding Israeli policy in the West Bank, without mentioning E1 at all.
“As the president has clearly stated, the US does not support Israel annexing the West Bank. A stable West Bank keeps Israel secure and is in line with this administration’s goal to achieve peace in the region,” read a statement attributed to a State Department spokesperson that was sent to querying reporters.
The comments came as Israel faced growing international criticism for advancing the E1 project earlier this week, which both supporters and opponents say could mark the death knell for the establishment of an independent Palestinian state by bisecting the West Bank and further preventing Palestinian territorial contiguity.
“The Israeli Government’s decision to publish construction tenders for the E1 settlement project is unacceptable,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen wrote Friday in a post on X. “We have long opposed this step.”
