In what was the Biden administration's harshest public criticism of Israeli settlement policy to date, the State Department on Tuesday said it strongly opposed Israel's plans for additional construction by Israel in Judea and Samaria, saying it was damaging for peace prospects between Israelis and Palestinians.
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"We are deeply concerned about the Israeli government's plan to advance thousands of settlement units tomorrow, Wednesday, many of them deep in the West Bank," State Department spokesperson Ned Price told a briefing.
"We strongly oppose the expansion of settlements, which is completely inconsistent with efforts to lower tensions and to ensure calm, and it damages the prospects for a two-state solution," Price said.
The Israeli Embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Israel on Sunday published tenders for about 1,300 new settlement homes beyond the Green Line and authorities are also expected to discuss proposals for another 3,000 homes.
Washington was continuing to raise its views on the issue directly with senior Israeli officials, Price said. He also said that Israel's plans to retroactively recognize "illegal outposts" were "unacceptable."
Since President Joe Biden took office in January, US officials have emphasized that they oppose further expansion of Jewish settlements.
A senior Biden administration official said earlier this month that Israel was aware of the administration's view of the need to refrain from actions that could be seen as "provocative" and undermine efforts to achieve a long-elusive two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinians.
Former Trump administration Mideast envoy, Jason D. Greenblatt issued on Wednesday a strong rebuke of the administration's reaction to the Israeli construction. Greenblatt, who was one of the main architects of President Donald Trump's peace plan and visited the region frequently during his years in the White House, took to Twitter, writing: "Mistake on Biden Administration's part. So-called "settlements"-really neighborhoods/towns/cities-aren't [the] reason there's no peace. US should: stop using this as an excuse for why there's no peace; stop comparing Israel & PA actions-they're not the same. Also-nothing about Hamas??"
Prime Minister Naftali Bennett had until Sunday mostly held off announcing new settlement construction since taking office in June, as he sought to ease tensions with Washington.
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