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“My personal view is that Canada needs more of a presence on the ground in Jerusalem. A lot of our allies have consular presences in the city, some countries have consular presences in East and West Jerusalem. So that’s where I think Canada needs to go.”

Trump announced in December that he would formally recognize Jerusalem as the capital and move the U.S. embassy there from Tel Aviv, a promise several presidential candidates had made over the years but on which none had followed through once in power.

Photo by LIOR MIZRAHI / GETTY IMAGES

“I can’t even understand why this is a debate. Not only is Jerusalem obviously and objectively the capital of the state of Israel since its creation over 60 years ago but it is the ancient capital of the Jewish peoples,” Kenney said.



He said he believes Israel is demonstrating “great sensitivity” in allowing the freedom to practice diverse religious beliefs at the holy sites that are located in Jerusalem.

Fellow panelist Jason Kenney, leader of Alberta’s United Conservative Party and a former federal cabinet minister under Stephen Harper, added he believes any settlement to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict must include assurances of freedom for faith communities and Palestinian people who live in Jerusalem, but “there will never be a comprehensive settlement that does not recognize Jerusalem as the ancient, eternal and indivisible capital of Israel.”

The legal status of Jerusalem is still contested even though Israel’s government mainly operates out of the city. After Trump’s announcement there was immediate criticism from many of Canada’s allies, who worried that the move would create instability and a barrier to peaceful settlement.