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UK needs policy rethink in the Middle East, says House of Lords report
Israel-Palestine peace process is weak and “illegal settlements” make two-state solution “impossible”, declare peers
May 3, 2017 17:55
Israel-Palestine peace process is weak and “illegal settlements” make two-state solution “impossible”, declare peers
May 3, 2017 17:55The UK must distance itself from the Trump administration’s “destabilising postures” in the Israel-Palestine conflict and recognise the Palestine as a state, a major House of Lords report has found.
The Lords’ international relations committee urged a complete UK policy re-think and an end to “automatic reliance on American leadership” in the Middle East.
Describing the chances of progress in the Israel-Palestine peace process as “weak”, the report declares Israeli policy on settlements to be illegal, making a two-state solution “increasingly impossible”.
It condemned the “mercurial and unpredictable” leadership of US President Donald Trump, and implored Boris Johnson, the Foreign Secretary, to forge new relationships across the Middle East.
The report read: “In February 2017, President Trump dropped the US commitment to a two-state solution, surrendering the decision to whatever ‘both parties like’.
“Second, his continued threat to move the US embassy to Jerusalem, which would recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, remains an inflammatory option.
“Third, his choice of David Friedman—an opponent of the two-state solution and advocate of Israeli settlements—as ambassador to Israel may raise tensions.
“The politics and policies of Israel diminish the possibilities of peace, specifically the rapid expansion of settlements beyond the agreed 1967 borders of Israel.”
The international relations committee is chaired by former Conservative cabinet member Lord Howell, and includes Lord Reid, a former Labour Home and Defence Secretary, and the former ambassador to the UN, Lord Hannay.
Both Labour and Conservative Friends of Israel rejected the report, with the former saying it displays a “simplistic and one-sided” narrative of the conflict.
Jennifer Gerber, the director of Labour Friends of Israel, said: “(The committee) is right to recognise that Donald Trump’s unpredictability and lack of understanding of the complexities of the Middle East threatens to further destabilise an already precarious and dangerous situation.
“However, we are concerned that the report displays a simplistic and one-sided narrative of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. There is no recognition of the far greater barriers represented by the Palestinian Authority’s unwillingness to recognise Israel as a Jewish state and its policy of incitement to violence and glorifying martyrs, or of Hamas’ rocket attacks and tunnel building.”
Lord Polak, honorary president of the Conservative Friends of Israel, said: “There is no evidence that the UK’s stance on Israel is diverging from Washington. Only yesterday, the UK rightly joined the US in voting against UNESCO’s egregious resolution on Jerusalem, and both countries have strongly criticised the UN Human Rights Council’s obsession with Israel.
“This group of Lords do not speak for, nor make, policy on behalf of the Government. Fortunately, policy is made by Prime Minister Theresa May, Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson and the Conservative Party.”
The report, published on Tuesday, also said the UK should support the Iran nuclear deal despite opposition from Mr Trump, and form new alliances in the Gulf region.
Lord Howell said: “We need a new UK Middle East strategy and set of policies that reflect the new reality in the region. We can no longer assume America will set the tone for the West’s relationship with the Middle East and the UK must give serious thought to how our own approach will need to change.”
