New York's Senator
CHARLES E. SCHUMER
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE July 9, 2001
SCHUMER CALLS ON ISRAEL AND
US TO BEGIN NEGOTIATING TIMETABLE FOR US EMBASSY MOVE
Senator Says US Embassy Move From Tel Aviv to Jerusalem
Should Be Made Independent of the Status of the Peace Process
Schumer Urges United Nations to Release Uncensored
Tapes of Hezbollah's Abduction of Israeli Soldiers
US Senator Charles E. Schumer today called on US and Israeli officials
to begin negotiating a timetable for the move of the US Embassy from
Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Schumer said the move should be made independent
of the status of the peace process and said that the issue has been,
and will continue to be, a centerpiece of his discussions with American
and Israeli officials - including Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon,
Israeli Foreign Minister Shimon Peres, Jerusalem Mayor Ehud Olmert
and outgoing US Ambassador to Israel Martin Indyk - during his stay
in Israel. Schumer also said he would discuss the issue with US Secretary
of State Colin Powell and with incoming US Ambassador to Israel Daniel
C. Kurtzer.
"The capital of Israel is Jerusalem, and the best way the
United States can acknowledge that is by sitting down with Israeli
officials and establishing a timetable for moving the embassy from
Tel Aviv to Jerusalem," Schumer said. "Jerusalem is the
capital of Israel regardless and independent of the status of the
peace process and the decision of when to move embassy to Jerusalem
should be too."
Schumer also called on the US
State Department to complete the necessary logistical studies that
must be completed in preparation for any embassy move. In
1995, Congress overwhelmingly passed the bipartisan Jerusalem Embassy
Act, recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and requiring
the United States to relocate its embassy there from Tel Aviv by
May 31, 1999. The legislation authorized the appropriation of $100
million to begin construction and allows the President to issue
six-month waivers delaying the start of construction for reasons
of national security. Several waivers have since been exercised
by the United States.
Israel is the only country in which the US embassy
is not located in the capital city. All major Israeli government
offices, except the Ministry of Defense, are located in Jerusalem,
requiring American diplomatic personnel to travel frequently to
the city in order to conduct official business.
Currently only Costa Rica, El Salvador, and Bolivia
locate their Israeli embassies in Jerusalem.
Schumer also announced that he will introduce legislation
in the Senate urging the United Nations to turn over uncensored
tapes of the abduction of Israeli soldiers by Hezbollah.
The abduction took place on October 7, 2000, when Hezbollah
guerillas crossed into Israel from Lebanon and kidnapped Adi Avidtan,
Binyamin Avraham, and Omar Souad. Eight days later, Hezbollah announced
that it had kidnapped a fourth soldier, Elchanan Tannebaum. All
four are currently being held in Lebanon.
Schumer arrived in Israel on
Sunday, July 8. His schedule included a meeting with Ambassador
Indyk, followed by military and intelligence briefings, and visits
to the Rabin Memorial and the Dolfinarium Discoteque ,
the site of last month's disco terrorist attack. Schumer
also met with hospitalized victims of the disco bombing and families
of Israeli soldiers being held by Hezbollah
in Lebanon Schumer then traveled to Jerusalem.
On Monday, July 9, Schumer's schedule included meetings
with Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Foreign Minister Shimon Peres,
as well as a helicopter tour of the northern border with Lebanon
and Syria, a tour of Jerusalem with Mayor Olmert, and the visit
to the potential site of the US Embassy in Jerusalem.
Schumer was joined by Malcolm
Honlein, Chairman of the Conference of Presidents of Major Jewish
Organizations, Jim Tisch, President of the United Jewish Appeal
Federation of Greater New York (UJA) and Michael Miller, Executive
Director of the Jewish Community Relations Council of New York (JCRC).
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