Daily Alert Archives

The European Union Labels Itself Biased

(Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs) Amb. Alan Baker - The European Court of Justice declared on Nov. 12, 2019: "Foodstuffs originating in the territories occupied by the State of Israel must bear the indication of their territory of origin, accompanied, where those foodstuffs come from an Israeli settlement within that territory, by the indication of that provenance." The EU-directed policy requiring member states to label products manufactured in Israeli settlements is intended to harm Israel and Israel only, as a distinct political action and as a means of pressuring Israel politically. The EU labeling requirement represents full identification with the aims of the BDS movement to undermine Israel and to weaken the relations between European states and Israel. The selective and discriminatory policy directed solely against Israel blatantly ignores the numerous situations in the world where states administering territories have transferred hundreds and thousands of their own citizens into the territories they are administering, such as Turkey in Northern Cyprus, Morocco in the Western Sahara, and Russia in Ukrainian territory. The labeling directive means that the EU has taken sides and has prejudged one of the central negotiating issues - that of settlements - which is still an open issue on the Israeli-Palestinian negotiating table. Self-respecting European states that genuinely believe in the importance of advancing the Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiation process cannot identify with or implement such a discriminatory measure intended to harm Israel. The writer, former legal adviser and deputy director-general of Israel's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, participated in the negotiation and drafting of the Oslo Accords with the Palestinians, as well as agreements and peace treaties with Egypt, Jordan, and Lebanon.
2019-11-13 00:00:00
Full Article