Israeli media: Trump says no to West Bank annexation

US President Donald Trump remains opposed to any formal Israeli annexation of the West Bank, a White House official said, speaking two days before Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is due to visit Washington, according to Israeli news outlet Ynet.

“A stable West Bank keeps Israel secure and is in line with this administration's goal to achieve peace in the region,” the official was quoted as saying by the outlet.

Trump has repeatedly made clear that he will not permit Israel to annex the West Bank, a move viewed by Arab leaders as a “red line” and regarded as a central element of the US-drafted peace deal unveiled last year to end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

“I will not allow Israel to annex the West Bank. I will not allow it. It's not going to happen,” Trump told reporters at the White House in September.

At the same time, the report notes that Trump’s opposition applies specifically to formal annexation and does not necessarily extend to all forms of settlement expansion in the territory.

Trump is expected to meet Netanyahu at the White House on February 11, where discussions are set to focus on Iran, according to a brief statement from Netanyahu’s office. The two leaders last held talks in December.

The renewed attention on the West Bank follows decisions approved on February 8 by Israel’s security cabinet to deepen Israeli control over the territory and expand Jewish settlement activity, moves that prompted widespread international criticism.

On Monday, the foreign ministers of eight Arab and Muslim countries issued a strong condemnation of what they described as “illegal” Israeli decisions aimed at entrenching settlement expansion. The European Union and the United Nations later joined the criticism, describing the measures as “another step in the wrong direction” and stating that they have “no legal validity.”

Israel captured the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip during the 1967 Middle East war. These territories are widely recognized by the international community as forming the basis of a future Palestinian state under the two-state solution.

By Tamilla Hasanova