Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has signed an agreement to push ahead with a controversial settlement expansion plan that would cut across land that the Palestinians seek for a state, Reuters reports.

“There will never be a Palestinian state. This place is ours,” Netanyahu said during a visit to the Maale Adumim settlement in the West Bank, where thousands of new housing units would be added.

“We will safeguard our heritage, our land, and our security.”

Netanyahu was joined by nationalist members of his coalition, including far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich