S. African ruling party condemns U.S. decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israeli capital

CAPE TOWN, Dec. 8 (Xinhua) -- The ruling African National Congress (ANC) on Friday condemned "in the strongest possible terms" the decision by the U.S. Administration to officially recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

"This blatantly provocative move severely undermines the spirit of multilateralism and is a significant setback to a fragile and already stalled peace process," the ANC said in a statement emailed to Xinhua.

U.S. President Donald Trump announced earlier this week that his administration will move its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. The decision has drawn worldwide condemnation and sparked a number of protests in Jerusalem and elsewhere.

Several armed groups in the region have labelled Trump's announcement as "a declaration of war".

The ANC concurs with the sentiment expressed by many world leaders that the U.S. position is a violation of a number of UN Security Council and UN General Assembly resolutions regarding the status of Jerusalem in any final settlement between the Israelis and the Palestinians, ANC Deputy Secretary General Jessie Duarte said in the statement.

The U.S. move is a further indication of the recklessness with which the Trump Administration has chosen to both pursue and communicate its foreign policy objectives in a highly volatile region, Duarte said.

"A very real possibility exists that this announcement could reignite the tinderbox of violence and cause the region to once again descend into bloodshed," Duarte warned.

On Thursday, the South African government also added its voice to universal condemnation of the U.S. decision, reiterating South Africa's principled position that unilateralism threatens the global balance of power, security and stability in a relatively volatile environment.

The ANC wholly agrees with the position of the South African government that reinforces the supremacy of multilateralism as the only way to secure a sustainable solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as well as a rules-based international order, Duarte said.

"The ANC remains committed to the two-state solution and this unilateral pronouncement by the U.S. does harm to Palestinian aspirations for an independent, peaceful state coexisting side by side with Israel, based on the 1967 borders and with East Jerusalem as its capital," said Duarte.

She voiced concern that the United States, instead of positioning itself as a credible advocate for a just and lasting solution to the Israel/Palestine issue, "is showing itself to be wholly partisan and favoring Israel", Duarte said.

She called on both Israelis and Palestinians to take steps to urgently resume talks to restart the peace process.

The ANC further calls on the U.S. Administration to reconsider its decision in the light of the negative ramifications for the cause of a just and lasting peace, Duarte said. Enditem