Three years after the end of the Second World War and in the aftermath of the Holocaust carried out by Nazi Germany’s systematic persecution murdering 6 million European Jews, the Provisional Government of Israel proclaimed a new State of Israel on May 14, 1948.
According to published reports, “Truman sent his telegram recognizing Israel 11 minutes after Ben-Gurion proclaimed the country’s existence on May 14, 1948.”
President Donald Trump delivered on his campaign promise to move the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. This fulfills America’s great promise in implementing the Jerusalem Embassy Act of 1995, a public law of the United States passed by the 104th Congress on Oct. 23, 1995.
Yet again, it was an American president’s moral leadership to stand firm against the opposition and media critics.
President Trump continues the legacy of America’s leadership in affirming the shared values and principles with trusted allies. This date, May 14, 2018, will be marked in history as a triumphant day when Americans and Israelis gathered to affirm Israel’s sovereignty and renewed the bonds of the strategic partnership between the two rule of law countries.
In a letter written a few weeks prior to Israel’s declaration of independence, Chaim Weizmann, the future president of Israel, conveyed this message to President Truman:
“The choice for our people, Mr. President, is between statehood and extermination. History and providence have placed this issue in your hands, and I am confident that you will yet decide it in the spirit of the moral law.”