Khaberni - Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, an extremist right-wing figure, said on Saturday that he is "fully convinced" that U.S. President Donald Trump will change his opinion regarding the annexation of the occupied West Bank.
This came in a post by Smotrich on the X platform commenting on Trump’s opposition to the initial approval by the Israeli Knesset (parliament) on Wednesday for two bills regarding Israel's annexation of the West Bank.
Trump said in an interview with "Time" magazine on Thursday that the annexation of the West Bank by Israel "will not happen because I promised the Arab countries that," warning that Tel Aviv "will lose the full support of the United States if that happens."
Although Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his right-wing Likud party have historically advocated for the annexation of the West Bank, he announced on Thursday, following American rejection of the move, that his party did not support the annexation bills.
Following these developments, Smotrich stated in his post, "I am convinced that just as in the case of the prisoners, President (Trump), who is a true friend of Israel, will change his opinion when he understands the importance of Israeli sovereignty over the lands of Judea and Samaria (the West Bank)," he claimed.
He mentioned that Netanyahu "previously convinced Trump of the importance of returning the detainees (referring to brokering a ceasefire in Gaza under the president's plan), but he did not show the same insistence on the matter of sovereignty."
He added, "Supporters of the right and the settlers must continue to demand the annexation of the West Bank lands until the United States realizes that true support for Israel means supporting annexation and rejecting a Palestinian state."
The Israeli minister claimed that Netanyahu, who was involved in the campaign for the detainees and explained repeatedly to the president the importance of their return, does not do the same regarding sovereignty and refrains from discussing it in his talks with President Trump.
He continued, "I have no blame for President (Trump) who easily conceded sovereignty and sold it to the Arab states in exchange for an agreement in Gaza, and perhaps also to expand the Abraham Accords."
Smotrich claimed that Trump "has not yet had a means to know how important the issue (annexation of the West Bank) is to the Israeli people and how much standing with Israel means supporting the application of sovereignty."
Israel's annexation of the West Bank would end the possibility of implementing the two-state solution, as stipulated in the relevant international legitimacy resolutions.
At least 160 countries out of the 193 United Nations member states recognize the State of Palestine.
Israel occupied the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, in 1967, in a move considered a clear violation of the United Nations Charter and principles of international law, and refuses to withdraw from it and establish an independent Palestinian state.
