Yair Lapid on CNN. Photo: Screenshot.

JNS.org – Israeli Finance Minister Yair Lapid said it is a “founding ethos” of Israel that Jerusalem will never again be divided, and that the city is not up for negotiation.

“If the Palestinians want a state, then they must know that this has a price and they will not get everything they want,” Lapid told Israel Radio.

Lapid’s remarks came as reports indicate that Jerusalem has been discussed during recent Israeli-Palestinian conflict negotiations. According to Israel Radio, Justice Minister Tzipi Livni, who is Israel’s chief negotiator, and Yitzhak Molcho, who represents Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in negotiations, have had differences over the possible borders of Jerusalem. Molcho supports maintaining the current municipal boundaries and including some Jewish communities beyond the security barrier, while Livni supports more flexible boundaries to accommodate Palestinian claims in eastern Jerusalem.

The status of Jerusalem has been a longstanding issue for Israelis and Palestinians. Divided between 1949-1967 between Israel and Jordan, Israel gained the eastern half of the city, which includes the Old City and Western Wall, during the 1967 Six Day War. But Palestinians want eastern Jerusalem as their future capital.