Ehud Olmert rejected any attempt by Diaspora Jews to dictate Israeli positions on Jerusalem.
The Israeli prime minister said his nation has the right to negotiate over the city, though he told reporters prior to the launch of U.S.-convened Israeli-Palestinian peace talks in Annapolis, Md., that Jerusalem was not on the table right now.
Asked about U.S. Jewish groups, including the Orthodox Union, that question whether Israel can bring up Jerusalem in talks, Olmert said, “Does any Jewish organization have a right to confer upon Israel what it negotiates or not? This questions was decided a long time ago. The government of Israel has a sovereign right to negotiate anything on behalf of Israel.”