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US officials prepared a draft statement in early September for Secretary of State Marco Rubio criticizing plans by the United Kingdom, France and Canada to restrict imports from Israeli settlements in the West Bank. The document, dated Sept. 8 and reviewed by Reuters, was never released.
According to two sources, David Milstein, a senior aide to US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, led the drafting of the statement. The draft proposed that Rubio describe the countries’ actions as a series of hostile measures against Israel and say they contributed to antisemitism.
“These tactics are unacceptably based on the strategy of the antisemitic boycott, divestment and sanctions movement,” the document said.
Why was the statement not released?
Three people familiar with the matter said the draft did not receive backing from senior White House and State Department officials. They spoke on condition of anonymity.
Speaking to reporters in Florida on Sept. 8, Rubio did not openly criticize the decision or name any specific country. Before departing for a trip to Latin America, he said: “Obviously, we are not going to do what the United Kingdom did. We saw their statement today, but I have no comment on it at this time.”
A senior US official told Reuters that the draft statement was prepared without consultations with the State Department or the White House. The US Embassy referred questions about Huckabee and Milstein’s positions to the State Department. The White House did not respond to a request for comment.
Disagreements over Israel policy in Washington
The episode highlights growing differences between the White House and senior US diplomats in Israel over how to respond to settlement expansion under the right-wing government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
US President Donald Trump has said he opposes settlement expansion. The policy has become a growing source of tension in Israel’s relations with its Arab neighbors. However, the Trump administration has not exerted significant pressure on Israel to change its policy.
This approach has at times put Trump at odds with Ambassador Mike Huckabee, a staunch supporter of the settlements. Huckabee, a Baptist minister, refers to the West Bank by the biblical name “Judea and Samaria,” used by the Israeli government but not officially recognized by the United States.
Last year, Milstein proposed that the United States impose sanctions on the International Criminal Court to push it to drop war crimes allegations against Israeli leaders over the Gaza war. The Trump administration has not implemented that measure so far.
Public support for Israel declines
US public support for Israel has declined since the Gaza war began in 2023, particularly among Democrats. According to a Quinnipiac University poll conducted in June, 48% of voters and 66% of Democrats believed that the United States was supporting Israel too much. The corresponding figures in 2017 were 16% and 20%.
A Pew Research Center poll conducted in late March showed that young conservative Americans had also become more critical of Israel. Among Republicans aged 18 to 49, 57% expressed an unfavorable view of Israel, compared with 50% a year earlier.
After meeting Netanyahu in December last year, Trump said they did not fully agree on the West Bank. Earlier, in September last year, he said he would not allow Israel to annex the territory.
