President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for secretary of state Rex Tillerson denounced the Obama administration Wednesday for a range of moves against Israel and reiterated vows made by the president-elect to bolster relations with the Jewish state.
Tillerson criticized a United Nations resolution, passed in December with an abstention from the United States, that describes the West Bank and east Jerusalem as occupied Palestinian territory and says that Israeli construction in those areas is illegal. The resolution received bipartisan condemnation in both chambers of Congress for prejudging the outcome of bilateral negotiations, among other critiques.
“The U.N. resolution that was passed, in my view, is not helpful,” Tillerson said during his Senate confirmation hearing.
“This issue has to be settled between the Israelis and the Palestinians, and no one can be coerced into coming to the negotiating table,” he said. “To force one party to the table through coercion, or however you want to describe the most recent resolution, is not useful.”
While affirming his hopes for a two-state solution, Tillerson said it “remains to be seen” whether it could become reality.
“There have been many opportunities for the parties to sit down and work things out,” he said. “Leadership certainly has not seized those opportunities.”
Violence from the Palestinian side as well as refusal from some officials to recognize Israel’s right to exist obstructs negotiations, he added.
“If you are negotiating with someone that denies your right to exist, you’d have to question, ‘well, why would they ever live up to any agreement if they don’t expect you to be around?'” he said. “In the case of the Palestinian leadership, while they have renounced violence, it is one thing to renounce it and another to take concrete action to prevent it.”
Tillerson also rejected a speech that Secretary of State John Kerry gave after the passage of the U.N. resolution. Critics condemned Kerry for focusing excessively in his remarks on Israeli construction in the West Bank.
“The secretary’s speech which followed that U.N. resolution I found quite troubling because of the attacks on Israel,” he said.
Tillerson assured lawmakers that the Trump administration would reinforce support for Israel.
“Israel is, has always been, and remains our most important ally in the region,” he said. “I think in the Trump administration, the president-elect has already made it clear that … we’re going to meet our obligations to Israel as our most important strategic partner in the region.”
The nominee also pledged to make countering efforts to boycott Israel a priority.
