Palestinian Authority (PA) cabinet leader Mohammad Shtayyeh on Friday welcomed the resumption of US financial aid to the PA, describing the move as "an important step in the right direction", the Xinhua news agency reported.
The US decision "is an important step in the right direction to reshape the (Palestinian) relationship with the US government, which stopped during Trump's term in the White House," he said in a statement.
On Thursday, the US Ambassador to the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, announced that Washington was resuming assistance programs to the PA, starting with a $15 million grant allocated to the communities in Judea, Samaria and the Gaza Strip.
Greenfield also said the Biden administration will be taking "steps to reopen diplomatic channels of communication that were halted during the last administration."
Since taking office, the Biden administration has renewed ties with the PA that have been frozen since 2017.
The PA had been boycotting the US in protest of President Donald Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and the relocation of the US embassy in Israel to the city.
However, the Biden administration is planning to roll back many of Trump’s policies related to Israel and the PA, including the reopening of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) office in Washington, as well as the consulate in Jerusalem.
A recently released document reveals that the Biden administration is crafting a plan aimed at “resetting” US ties with the PA.
The US vision, according to the memo, is “to advance freedom, security, and prosperity for both Israelis and Palestinians in the immediate term.”
(Arutz Sheva’s North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of Shabbat in New York. The time posted automatically on all Arutz Sheva articles, however, is Israeli time.)