A group of Democratic Senators, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Senator Bob Menendez (D-NJ) and Senator Ben Cardin (D-MD), on Friday issued a statement in which they expressed their opposition to Israeli plans to apply sovereignty over Judea and Samaria.
“As strong and dedicated supporters of the US-Israel relationship, we are compelled to express opposition to the proposed unilateral annexation of territory in the West Bank,” the senior Democratic senators said in a joint statement to Jewish Insider.
The senators noted that direct negotiations between the Israelis and the Palestinians are “the only path for a durable peace.” They warned that annexation “could undermine regional stability and broader US national security interests in the region.”
Last month, 19 Senate Democrats sent a letter to Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Alternate Prime Minister and Defense Minister Benny Gantz in which they warn against an Israeli move to apply sovereignty over Judea and Samaria.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi recently warned that a unilateral Israeli move to apply sovereignty over Judea and Samaria would undermine American national security interests and harm bipartisan support for Israel in America.
Cardin, who signed Friday’s statement, told Jewish Insider last month that he would refrain from signing onto his colleagues’ letter because “I don’t like to second guess Israel’s government’s decisions, although I have been pretty critical of a lot of policies under the Netanyahu prime ministership.”
