On Thursday, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas hosted a delegation of the US Congress in Ramallah, Palestinian sources announced.
As per the Palestinian local news agency, Abbas informed the delegation of 11 congress representatives of the Democratic and Republican parties and was chaired by Gregory Meeks, the chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee in the US House of Representatives on the latest progress in Palestine.
Affirming Palestine’s commitment to achieving a just and comprehensive peace, Abbas stressed that it can be achieved through the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital and based on the pre-1967 borders.
He also made assessments on Palestinian relations with the new US administration and expressed his satisfaction with regards to talks held with President Joe Biden on several issues.
Referring to the issue of elections, Abbas said: “We will not hold elections without Jerusalem, because East Jerusalem is the capital of the State of Palestine.”
The President confirmed the Palestinian side is ready to augment bilateral relations with the US administration to attend to the interests of the two friendly peoples, particularly as the US is on its way to revive its consulate in occupied Jerusalem.
The President replied to all questions modeled by the US Congresspeople concerning the Palestinian elections and several other issues.
About the issue of elections, the President affirmed the commitment of the Palestinian leadership to holding the elections as soon as Israel removes all the obstacles to voting in occupied East Jerusalem. “We will not hold elections without Jerusalem, because East Jerusalem is the capital of the State of Palestine,” said the President during the meeting.
