Canadian lawmaker and prime ministerial candidate Erin O’Toole on Wednesday vowed to move his country’s embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem if he were elected.
“Jerusalem is the eternal capital of the Jewish people, and the modern presence there just cements this. The Knesset, the Supreme Court and Foreign Ministry are all in west Jerusalem,” O’Toole, a member of Canada’s Conservative Party, said in a video posted on Facebook.
“I also believe that we need more presence on the ground there, and I want us to explore more exchanges and collaborations with Israel to partner, much like we do with our other closest allies.
“We support a two-state solution, but that does not prevent us from doing more with our friend and ally, Israel. As prime minister, I will follow through on our policy and move our embassy.”
He slammed Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s “weakened and wavered” support for the Jewish state and hailed former Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s for making Canada a “trustworthy friend to Israel.”
In February, the Canadian parliamentarian called “to recognize the reality that Jerusalem is Israel’s capital and move our embassy there.”
He accompanied the video with a message saying, “When I’m prime minister, I will actually stand up for Canada’s values and Canada’s allies.”
In May 2017, President Donald Trump fulfilled a campaign promise by moving the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.