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How Significant Is the U.S. Declaration on Israeli Settlements?

(Jerusalem Post) Herb Keinon - Alan Baker, a former Israeli ambassador to Canada who served for years as the Foreign Ministry's legal adviser, said that ranking the significance of the U.S. declaration on settlements on a scale of one to 10, he would give it a six. "It's not vital, it's a perception of legality of Israel's settlements - it changes the perception that has existed up until now in the U.S. administration, and it goes against the perception held by the EU and the UN, which is a political perception and not really a legal perception." Baker, now the director of the Institute for Contemporary Affairs at the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs, said that those claiming the settlements are illegal under international law are not basing this on any clear legal determination or a genuine evaluation of the sources of international law, but rather on UN resolutions that he stressed were nonbinding, political - not legal - decisions. Baker acknowledged that the declaration is helpful to Israel because it throws into question "assumptions that are held by the Palestinian leadership, and by the UN and EU, that constitute pressure in any negotiation process. The Palestinians cannot come and say, 'Look, it is widely accepted that Israeli settlements are illegal,' because there is a U.S. opinion that Pompeo said is based on considerable research and evaluation of legal sources, and which says exactly the opposite."
2019-11-22 00:00:00
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