DEAD SEA, Jordan (AP) — The Palestinian foreign minister says Israel's leader will face a "real problem" if he follows through with his election campaign promise to annex Jewish settlements in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

Riad Malki told The Associated Press Sunday on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Jordan that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's pledge was likely aimed at rallying his nationalist base in the final stretch of a tight race.

He added that Palestinians would resist such a policy if carried out.

Netanyahu has promoted Jewish settlement expansion in his four terms as prime minister, but until now refrained from presenting a detailed vision for the West Bank, viewed by Palestinians as the heartland of a future state.

It would mark a dramatic shift for Netanyahu, ahead of Tuesday's balloting.