Nikki Haley, seen here with Israeli President Reuven Rivlin in June, said Sunday she was not worried about anti-U.S. sentiment being whipped up by President Donald Trump's Jerusalem decision. | Debbie Hill/Pool photo via AP Haley: Trump's Jerusalem decision won't hinder peace

U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said Sunday that President Donald Trump’s decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel “is going to move the ball forward for the peace process,” even as Palestinian leaders warn that the move has eroded peace efforts.

“When it comes to those that are upset, we knew that was going to happen. But courage does cause that. When you make a decision, you're going have some that see it negatively, and you’re going to have some that see it positively,” she told CNN’s “State of the Union.” “But I strongly believe this is going to move the ball forward for the peace process.”


Trump’s Wednesday announcement that the U.S. would recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and begin the process of moving its embassy there from Tel Aviv, was met with protests and violence from Palestinians. Jerusalem, the eastern part of which was annexed from Jordan by Israel in 1967, has long been a sticking point in peace negotiations in the region — one on which past U.S. administrations avoided taking sides. Palestinians would almost certainly seek to establish East Jerusalem as their capital as part of any two-state peace agreement.

Haley argued that by recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, a move long sought by the Israeli government, the U.S. had removed from the table a contentious point, allowing Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations to press forward on other issues. She noted that Trump had pointedly not taken sides on any other contentious issues, including borders and the potential for a divided Jerusalem serving as the capital for both Palestine and Israel.

She said she had “no concerns” that Trump’s action had emboldened extremists in the region and whipped up anti-U.S. sentiment.

Unconvinced, CNN host Jake Tapper said Haley had not offered a clear answer on how recognizing Jerusalem would progress peace negotiations. Haley replied with a confident pledge to come back and tout the success she expects from the move.

“That’s OK,” she said in response to Tapper’s doubts. “It will move the peace process forward, and I’ll come back and tell you I told you so.”

