CBNNews.com - NEW YORK CITY - Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat is meeting with American Jewish leaders, businessmen, investors and politicians this week in New York, Boston and Washington, D.C.

In a luncheon address sponsored by the Conference of Major American Jewish Organizations on Wednesday, Barkat said Jerusalem must remain the undivided capital of the Jewish state.

"There is no practical city in the world that was split that works well," the mayor said. Jerusalem must be "managed both ideologically and practically as one city," which is open for people of all faiths.

While in Manhattan, Barkat met with Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

On Thursday, Jerusalem's mayor traveled to Boston to meet with Harvard Business School Professor Michael Porter to learn more about the creation of economic development zones.

On Friday, Barkat will meet with U.S. State Department officials in Washington.

"I expect our American friends and the American administration to be open-minded and share our new vision," Barkat said, dismissing a remark alleging that his plans to develop Jerusalem were dependent on a peace deal with the Palestinians.

"Peace is not a prerequisite," he said, though "it's a very important goal to achieve."

Barkat said he and Prime Minister-designate Binyamin Netanyahu were lined up "eye to eye" on the development of the nation's capital.

Source: The Jerusalem Post