Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks to foreign correspondents at a reception on Thursday.
AFP/Jerusalem
Israel called in European ambassadors in a tit-for-tat move yesterday after four EU states lodged formal protests against the right-wing government’s drive to expand settlements in the occupied West Bank.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused the European Union of a “hypocritical” attitude toward the Middle East process, saying it should be more concerned by Palestinian militancy than Israeli housing construction.
The new spat with Europe follows a furious public row with the United States after Defence Minister Moshe Yaalon launched a bitter personal tirade against Secretary of State John Kerry for his “obsession” with brokering a framework peace deal with the Palestinians by April.
Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman ordered the ambassadors of Britain, France, Italy and Spain be called in to “stress to them that their perpetual one-sided stance against Israel and in favour of the Palestinians is unacceptable and creates the impression they are only seeking ways to blame Israel”, his spokesman said.
“Beyond being biased, unbalanced and ignoring the reality on the ground, the positions held by these states significantly harm the possibility of reaching some sort of agreement between the sides,” a statement said.
Last Friday, Israel announced plans for some 1,800 homes in the West Bank, including Arab East Jerusalem, just days after the latest peace mission by Kerry, his 10th visit to the region in less than a year.
Israeli ambassadors in London, Rome and Paris were called in over the plans on Thursday, with the ambassador in Madrid summoned for yesterday.
Netanyahu hit out at the move by the four governments.
“The EU calls our ambassadors in because of the construction of a few houses? When did the EU call in the Palestinian ambassadors about incitement that calls for Israel’s destruction?” Netanyahu asked foreign correspondents at a Thursday reception.
Netanyahu said this “imbalance... pushes peace further away”, and insisted Israel’s settlement expansion plans should not be seen as counter-productive to the efforts under way since last July to reach a deal with the Palestinians.
“We are keeping in line exactly with the understandings we undertook at the beginning of the talks,” he said at the reception. “It was also equally clear that Israel undertook no restraints on construction.”