US President Donald Trump's failure to rally support at the United Nations for his decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital amounted to a "gift to Iran", according to an analysis published by the Haaretz daily news website.
The UN vote on December 21, in which a resounding majority of member states declared Trump's move to be null and void, constituted "a worldwide vote of no confidence" in the US president, "from which Israel will suffer the next time it seeks to draft the international community to some joint effort against Iran or any other enemy", stated the analysis, published on the weekend.
"Hostility between the European Union, Russia and China and the United States regarding the sanctions and fear over a major breach in the nuclear agreement also impacted the vote on Jerusalem's status, generating negative momentum in which any new American proposal on Iran could encounter international opposition just by the fact that it was Trump who proposed it, and that's the danger to Israel," the Haaretz article stated.
"From Iran's perspective (and that of the Arab countries), there could be no happier outcome, despite the vote's declarative and non-binding nature."
Trump must decide by mid-January whether he will continue to waive sanctions on Iran, according to the terms of the historic nuclear deal between Iran and world powers.
Under the agreement, Iran has been limiting its uranium enrichment programme in return for sanctions relief. Trump has repeatedly derided the pact as the "worst deal ever negotiated", while Israel has warned that the agreement could enable Iran to obtain a nuclear arsenal within a few years' time.
In his December 6 announcement recognising Jerusalem as Israel's capital, Trump said the US would begin preparations to move its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. No country currently has an embassy in the holy city, which has particular significance for Muslims, Christians and Jews.
The US decision has triggered a series of protests in the occupied Palestinian territories and around the world.
