U.S. President George W. Bush signed legislation Monday, including a provision that requires his administration to identify Jerusalem as Israel's capital. Nonethless he stated that his administration was not legally bound to follow that part of the legislation.
According to Reuters, Bush put his signature on the Foreign Relations Authorization Act for 2003, which gives the administration more than $4 billion for running the State Department. Bush had the power to veto the bill, but the provisions on Jerusalem were only a small part of a piece of legislation that covers the whole world and gives his administration the money needed to run diplomacy.
In a written statement, Bush said U.S. policy regarding Jerusalem "has not changed." If Congress meant the language on Jerusalem to be mandatory, then lawmakers were encroaching on the president's right to conduct foreign policy, he said."
"The purported direction... would, if construed as mandatory rather than advisory, impermissibly interfere with the president's constitutional authority to formulate the position of the United States, speak for the nation in international affairs and determine the terms on which recognition is given to foreign states," Bush said.
The bill goes further on Jerusalem than previously demanded by Congress, which for years has pressed successive presidents on the related question of moving the U.S. Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.
State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said Monday that the United States continues to believe that the status of Jerusalem should be decided in "permanent status" talks between Israelis and Palestinians.
"We have always opposed legislative action that hinders the president's prerogatives in advancing our interests in the region and promoting a just and lasting peace," he added.
The Palestinian Cabinet, convened Tuesday condemned the U.S. legislation. Cabinet Minister Saeb Erekat said President Bush's signing of the bill "undermines all efforts being exerted to revive the peace process and put it back on track." He called it "a flagrant violation" of agreements signed by the United States and Israel to negotiate Jerusalem's permanent status.
The Arab American Institute wrote to Bush on Friday urging him to veto the bill on the grounds that it overturns existing U.S. policy and presidential authority. "At a time when you are building a coalition to support our goals in the Middle East, Congress should not be undermining your efforts," said George Salem, chairman of the institute. (Albawaba.com)
© 2002 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
