Australia considers following Trump's lead and moving embassy to Jerusalem
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has said that Canberra is open to recognising Jerusalem as Israel's capital, days before a by-election in an area with a high proportion of Jewish people.
Morrison's comments about potentially following US President Donald Trump's controversial decision in December would reverse decades of foreign policy and inflame tension with some of Australia's Asian neighbours.
Morrison's openness to recognising Jerusalem and moving Australia's embassy there comes four days before a by-election in Sydney at which his centre-right coalition runs the risk of losing its tenuous hold on power.
The by-election is in the Sydney harbourside seat of Wentworth vacated by former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull, who was ousted in August in a coup by members of Morrison's Liberal party, the senior partner in a Liberal-National coalition. Morrison will have to negotiate with independents in order to continue governing in a minority if the coalition loses Saturday's by-election.
Census figures show 12.5 percent of people in Wentworth are Jewish, a significantly larger proportion than elsewhere in Australia. The Liberal candidate contesting the by-election on Saturday, Dave Sharma, is a former Australian ambassador to Israel who has floated the idea in the past.
Australia is due to a sign a trade deal this year with Indonesia, the world's biggest Muslim-majority country, where the Palestinian question is a sensitive issue and tens of thousands protested against Trump’s decision.
Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi, speaking at a joint news conference with Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki in Jakarta, reaffirmed Indonesia's support for a two-state solution to the Middle East dispute and warned Australia against the risk of insecurity.
"Indonesia asks Australia and other countries to support peace talks ... and not take steps that would threaten that peace process and stability of world security," Marsudi said.
Morrison told parliament on Tuesday he had been in touch with Indonesian President Joko Widodo to explain his position. Maliki said he was saddened that Australia might violate international law and disrespect a UN Security Council resolution.
"They are risking Australia's trade and business relationship with the rest of the world, in particular (the) Arab and Muslim world," he said.
Ambassadors from 13 Arab countries met in Canberra on Tuesday and agreed to send a letter to Australia's foreign minister expressing their concern, Egyptian ambassador to Australia Mohamed Khairat said.
Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whom Morrison had telephoned to explain his shift, said on Twitter he was "very thankful" Morrison was considering the move.
Palestinians, with broad international backing, want East Jerusalem as the capital of a future state they hope to establish in the occupied West Bank and the Gaza Strip. Peace talks between the parties broke down in 2014.
The USA and Guatemala are the only countries with embassies in Jerusalem, but Mr Netanyahu has attempted to persuade others to follow suit.
