By David Singer ——Bio and Archives--December 16, 2015
World News | CFP Comments | Reader Friendly | Subscribe | Email Us
"The decision to label products was a mistake. Europe is loud about Israel, but quiet about 200 other conflicts around the world."
"We do not support the decision to make a special markon products coming from the West Bank or the Golan Heights. This step is inefficient and illogical. It would only hurt attempts to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict."Greece's decision was communicated by letter from its Foreign Minister to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after a visit by Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras to Israel - when extensive bilateral cooperation in economic matters, technology, science, education, trade, energy, and agriculturewere concluded. MeantimeGerman Chancellor Angela Merkel is backing a recent German Foreign Ministry statement that the new EU labeling initiative:
"does not deal with a stigmatized warning decal, as many have presented... What Brussels wants is, however, only a clear designation of the origin of the products."
"One is related to the Middle East peace process, especially after the adoption of the technical guidelines on indication of origin. We had an exchange of views in this respect with the ministers, and we commonly decided that it was important also for me to pass this message publicly that the Council and the European Union stay united on these technical guidelines on indication of origin, which is in no way a boycott and should in no way be interpreted as one,"Claiming to be united on these "technical guidelines"--despite their having been already rejected by Hungary and Greece--is surely deceptive and misleading. Describing the labelling of Jewish products--but not Arab products - as "technical guidelines" - is an insult to everyone's intelligence. They constitute clear "stigmatized warning decals". Mogherini continued:
"The second thing on which the Council was completely united is our continued engagement in the Middle East peace process and in broader bilateral relations with Israel. There is full unity and solidarity among member states and among European institutions on that."Mogherini is seriously mistaken if she thinks Israel will allow a clearly conflicted EU to remain part of the Quartet of Mideast peacemakers which also includes the UN, United States and Russia. No amount of doublespeak will enable the EU to escape the charges that these labelling requirements:
View Comments
David Singer is an Australian Lawyer, a Foundation Member of the International Analyst Network and Convenor of Jordan is Palestine International—an organization calling for sovereignty of the West Bank and Gaza to be allocated between Israel and Jordan as the two successor States to the Mandate for Palestine. Previous articles written by him can be found at: jordanispalestine.blogspot.com