OMM Redaksiyası
Foreign ministers from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Egypt, Jordan, Indonesia, Pakistan and Türkiye have launched a joint initiative to expand international measures against trade linked to Israeli settlements.
In a joint statement, the countries welcomed the United Kingdom’s decision to ban imports of goods from illegal Israeli settlements and impose restrictions on services connected with those settlements. The ministers called on other governments to take similar steps in line with international law.
They also supported initiatives announced by Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Iceland, Ireland, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom. Those countries plan to impose, or are considering imposing, national or European-level restrictions on goods produced in the settlements.
The diplomats called for “concrete measures” against activities that support illegal Israeli settlements or enable their continued operation. They said such measures are consistent with international law, relevant UN resolutions and the International Court of Justice’s advisory opinion of July 19, 2024.
UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband announced that his country would ban imports of goods from illegal Israeli settlements. The planned restrictions will cover services including construction, infrastructure, financing and real estate. A ban on advertising illegal settlements is also envisaged.
Miliband said the new legislation would take effect within six to nine months. He stressed that the sanctions would target illegal settlements and their expansion, not Israel.
Israel has strongly opposed the measures. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar announced that retaliatory steps would be taken against the United Kingdom, including plans to close the British consulate in East Jerusalem.
The ministers of the eight countries also reiterated their call for a two-state solution. They said Gaza must form part of a future Palestinian state and called for the full and immediate implementation of US President Donald Trump’s comprehensive plan to end the Gaza conflict.
The statement said the “only realistic path” to a just, lasting and comprehensive peace was the establishment of an independent, sovereign, territorially contiguous and viable Palestinian state along the June 4, 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital.
