Australia has reversed a four-year-old decision to recognise West Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, in a U-turn that sparked an angry response from the Middle Eastern country.
Penny Wong, Australia’s foreign minister, said the previous government’s decision to recognise West Jerusalem undermined efforts to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and had put Canberra “out of step with the majority of the international community”.
“The Australian government remains committed to a two-state solution in which Israel and a future Palestinian state can coexist in peace and security within internationally recognised borders,” she said on Tuesday. “We will not support an approach that undermines this prospect.”