Turkey says Trump move on Jerusalem 'irresponsible', illegal

ISTANBUL: Turkey on Wednesday slammed as irresponsible and illegal the announcement by US President Donald Trump that Washington was recognising Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.

“We condemn the irresponsible statement of the US administration… the decision is against international law and relevant UN resolutions,” Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu wrote on Twitter.

Ahead of Trump’s widely-flagged announcement Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had warned after a meeting with Jordanian King Abdullah II that the move would “play into the hands” of terror groups.

Erdogan has already called a summit meeting of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in Istanbul on December 13 to discuss the issue.

The Turkish foreign ministry added in a statement that the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians can only be solved through the creation of a Palestinian state with east Jerusalem as its capital.

It warned that the decision by Trump will have “negative reflections on the peace and stability in the region” and risks “completely destroying the ground for peace”.

“We call on the US administration to reconsider this faulty decision which may result in highly negative outcomes,” it added.