Vilnius Its Jewish influence has led to it being described as the "Jerusalem of Lithuania" and Napoleon named it "the Jerusalem of the North" as he was passing through in 1812. In 2009, Vilnius was the European Capital of Culture, together with the Austrian city of Linz. The name of the city originates from the Vilnia River. The city has also been known by many derivate spellings in various languages throughout its history: "Vilna" was once common in English. The most notable non-Lithuanian names for the city include: , , , , , , ("Vilne"). A Russian name from the time
United States recognition of Jerusalem as capital of Israel Yisrael Eichler, also of UTJ, expressed similar views saying he would "rather have 1,000 homes for young couples in Jerusalem than one American embassy building." In contrast, left-wing party Meretz said recognition of Jerusalem should only come with the establishment of a Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital, adding that Trump's declaration "de facto betrays the Zionist vision and the values on which the State of Israel was established". Hanin Zoabi and Ayman Odeh, both members of the United Arab List party, said the US could no longer act as a peace mediator. Odeh said that "Trump is