U.S. President Donald Trump has signed a waiver to delay relocating the U.S. Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, the White House said.
With this move Trump has avoided a step that would have complicated his efforts to restart long-stalled Israeli-Palestinian peace talks.
During the build up to the 2016 U.S. Presidential Election, Trump had promised to move the embassy.
However Trump chose instead to continue his predecessors’ policy of signing a six-month waiver overriding a 1995 law requiring that the embassy be transferred to Jerusalem.
A U.S. official said Trump remained committed to his campaign pledge and would eventually fulfill it, though no timetable had been set.
“He has repeatedly stated his intention to move it,” the White House said in a statement. “The question is not if that move happens, but only when.”
The White House said Trump “made this decision to maximize the chances of successfully negotiating a deal between Israel and the Palestinians.”