Netanyahu Says Still Hopes US Will Recognize Israel’s Golan Hold
by Reuters and Algemeiner Staff
Israel still hopes the US will recognize its claim to sovereignty over the Golan Heights, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday, after a top American official said the issue is not currently under consideration by Washington.
Israel captured much of the Golan from Syria in a 1967 war and annexed it, in a move not endorsed internationally. In May, a senior Israeli official said that US recognition could be forthcoming within months.
But in a Reuters interview during a visit to Israel this week, US National Security Adviser John Bolton said “there’s no discussion of it, no decision within the US government.”
Netanyahu was asked whether Israel, in light of Bolton’s remarks, had dropped expectations of US recognition of Israel‘s Golan claim. He replied: “Would I give up on such a thing? No way.”
In the interview, Bolton said that while the United States understands Israel‘s claim that it has annexed the Golan Heights, “there’s no change in the US position for now.”