"I have determined that it is time to officially recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel," President Trump said in an address from the White House on Wednesday afternoon. He also directed the State Department to "begin preparation to move the American Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem."
Trump's announcement fulfills a campaign promise while threatening to unsettle volatile politics in the region. It's a dramatic shift from American foreign policy for the last few decades, and such a move will make the U.S. the only country with an embassy in Jerusalem.
Trump said previous presidents have "failed to deliver" on pledges to acknowledge Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. "I am delivering," he said, in a speech that began shortly after 1 p.m. ET.
"Today we finally acknowledge the obvious," he said. "This is nothing more or less than a recognition of reality."
Jerusalem is claimed by as a capital city by both Israelis and Palestinians, and determining the status of the city would be a central element of any possible peace agreement.
For decades, world powers including the U.S. have refrained from taking sides in that dispute, locating their embassies in Tel Aviv and avoiding any reference to Jerusalem as a part of Israel.
Trump says his announcement does mean the U.S. is taking a position on any possible future peace talks between Israelis and Palestinians, or the "final status" of Jerusalem after such talks.
In 1995, Congress passed a law calling for the U.S. to recognize Jerusalem as the Israeli capital and for the embassy to be moved to Jerusalem. But every president since then has chosen to waive that law, putting off implementation six months at a time.
As The Two-Way reported yesterday:
"Moving the embassy was one of Trump's campaign promises as he appealed to pro-Israel voters, including many American evangelicals.
"The White House insists the Jerusalem policy change does not lessen the chances for reaching peace between Israelis and Palestinians. Officials said regional leaders contacted before the decision were committed to encouraging a peaceful solution. But the administration also took precautions.
"The State Department issued warnings to diplomats in the region that protests could break out in the region following a change in policy on Jerusalem."
The decision "does not sit well with many key players in the region," as NPR's Scott Neuman wrote this morning:
"Jordan's King Abdullah reportedly told the president that the expected decision will have 'dangerous repercussions on the stability and security of the region,' according to a palace statement.
"Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, who spoke by telephone with Trump, warned of 'the dangerous consequences such a decision would have to the peace process and to the peace, security and stability of the region and of the world,' Abbas spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeina said in a statement, according to Al-Jazeera.
"That was a sentiment echoed by Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, who cautioned that it 'would undermine the chances of peace in the Middle East.'
"In a fiery televised speech on Monday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan warned Trump by name that the move constituted a 'red line' for Muslims.
" 'We could go as far as cutting diplomatic ties with Israel over the issue,' Erdogan said."
"There will of course be disagreement and dissent" over the announcement, Trump said on Wednesday. But he called for peace between all parties.