The diplomatic demarche, sent on Tuesday, says countries
that take "anti-Israel actions" following the conference will be viewed
as acting in opposition to US foreign policy interests and could face
diplomatic consequences from Washington.
The
demarche, which was not previously reported, runs squarely against the
diplomacy of two close allies France and Saudi Arabia, who are co-hosting the
gathering next week in New York that aims to lay out the parameters for a
roadmap to a Palestinian state, while ensuring Israel's security.
"We are urging governments not to participate in the
conference, which we view as counterproductive to ongoing, life-saving efforts
to end the war in Gaza and free hostages," read the cable.
President Emmanuel Macron has suggested France could recognise
a Palestinian state in Israeli-occupied territories at the conference.
French officials say they have been working to avoid a clash with the US,
Israel's staunchest major ally.
"The United States opposes any steps that would
unilaterally recognize a conjectural Palestinian state, which adds significant
legal and political obstacles to the eventual resolution of the conflict and
could coerce Israel during a war, thereby supporting its enemies," the
cable read.
It is
on record that the US for decades backed a two-state solution between the
Israelis and the Palestinians that would create a state for Palestinians in the
West Bank and Gaza alongside Israel.
Trump, in his first term, was relatively tepid in his
approach to a two-state solution, a longtime pillar of U.S. Middle East policy.
The Republican president has given little sign of where he stands on the issue
in his second term.
On
Tuesday, the US ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, a long-time vocal
supporter of Israel, said he did not think an independent Palestinian
state remained a US foreign policy goal.
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