ADVERTISEMENT

VP Pence: Trump Has 'Made History' With Opening of U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem

'Trump has now etched his name into the ineffaceable story of Jerusalem'

Vice President Mike Pence
Vice President Mike Pence / Getty Images
May 14, 2018

Vice President Mike Pence will tell a distinguished group of U.S. officials and diplomats at an event hosted by the Israeli embassy in Washington, D.C., to celebrate the opening Monday of the new U.S. embassy in Jerusalem that President Donald Trump "has made history" with his decision to relocate the embassy from Tel Aviv, according to an advance copy of Pence's remarks obtained by the Washington Free Beacon.

"From King David's time to our own, President Trump has now etched his name into the ineffaceable story of Jerusalem," Pence will tell the crowd during his keynote speech marking the embassy's opening.

The United States, according to Pence, is taking a bold stance in the region by recognizing the "fact" that Jerusalem is Israel's capital.

"By finally recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's capital, the United States has chosen fact over fiction–and fact is the only true foundation for a just and lasting peace," Pence states in the written remarks. "And as President Trump made clear this morning, 'our greatest hope is for peace.'"

The Free Beacon first disclosed Sunday evening that the Trump administration is in the final stages of crafting its own Israeli-Palestinian peace plan that will be presented to both parties in the coming month or two.

Pence will also back-up Trump's recent decision to walk away from the landmark nuclear agreement with Iran, telling attendees Iran's continued aggression against the Jewish state validates Trump's decision to nix the deal.

"As the president said, the Iran deal 'didn't bring calm, it didn't bring peace, and it never will,'" according to Pence. "In fact, Iran's unprecedented missile attacks on Israel last week only validated the president's decision, and this dangerous act of aggression only strengthened our resolve."

With the threat of Iranian-backed violence growing in the wake of Trump's decision to kill the nuclear deal, Pence said the United States is pursuing efforts to further strengthen ties with Israel and ensure it is prepared to defend itself from any attack.

"As we demonstrated last week, the United States is once again leading the free world in standing up to the leading state sponsor of terror–when President Trump withdrew the United States of America from the disastrous Iran nuclear deal," Pence will state. "And so today, let me assure you all … the United States will never allow Iran to obtain a nuclear weapon–that is our solemn promise to Israel and to the world!"

"The United States and Israel have long stood together to confront the terrible scourge of radical Islamic terrorism–and today, we renew our pledge to stand shoulder-to-shoulder as we drive that menace from the face of the Earth," Pence will state in his written remarks.

The vice president played a key role in ensuring Trump made good on his campaign promise to relocate the U.S. embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, senior White House officials told the Free Beacon.

His trips to the region were critical in laying the groundwork for the embassy project to move forward, these sources said.

"The vice president was a vocal supporter of the president's decision to move the embassy and made that known to the president," one senior White House official told the Free Beacon, speaking only on background.

"He traveled to Israel late last year shortly after the announcement was made to reaffirm the U.S.'s commitment to the alliance and to get the embassy moved to Jerusalem within a year," the source said.

Pence also took time in his remarks to celebrate Israel's achievements over the last 70 years, since the United States became the first nation to recognize its independence.

"We gather here to celebrate a miracle of history–the day when the Jewish people ended the longest exile of any people, anywhere–and reclaimed a Jewish future and rebuilt the Jewish State," Pence will state. "As we look at Israel today, it is extraordinary to behold all the progress she has made, and the example that she sets. The truth is, today, Israel is not only 70 years old–Israel is 70 years strong."

Published under: Israel , Mike Pence