Nashville (CNN) Jeb Bush said Saturday that Jerusalem is the capital of Israel and called for the United States to move its embassy to there from Tel Aviv.

"I support that, absolutely," the former Florida governor said, responding to a question about whether the city should be Israel's capital "forever."

"I also support moving the embassy to Jerusalem as well -- our embassy. Not just as a symbol but a show of solidarity," he continued, speaking to reporters in Nashville before the Tennessee GOP's Statesmen's Dinner.

Israelis consider Jerusalem the capital of their country, but Palestinians also lay claim to the city as the capital of a prospective independent state.

Bush's answer falls in line with the Republican platform and Mitt Romney's position during the 2012 presidential race. And while previous presidents, including George W. Bush and Bill Clinton, have vowed that they would move the embassy to Jerusalem, the embassy remains in Tel Aviv, as do most other countries' embassies.

Read More