Yesterday, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced his department’s conclusion that the “establishment of Israeli civilian settlements in the West Bank is not per-se inconsistent with international law.” He stressed that the decision would not prejudice any future agreements, and pointed to the imprudence of reducing Israel’s conflict with the Palestinians to a matter of international law, instead affirming the long-held U.S. position that only negotiations between the parties could bring about a solution. Caroline Glick comments:
In [Pompeo’s] words, “calling the establishment of civilian settlements inconsistent with international law has not advanced the cause of peace.” Of course it hasn’t. Placing a lie in the center of the discourse on the Palestinian conflict with Israel is no way to promote understanding and coexistence.
In the interest of promoting peace, Pompeo instead told the truth. Not only are Israeli settlements not illegal. Pompeo noted that they are arguably more justified than civilian settlements built in other disputed territories.
Pompeo’s statement, and indeed the Trump administration’s decision to publish its position now, represent a complete rebuke of the European Union. The EU has made its false determination that Israeli settlements in Judea and Samaria are illegal as a [pretext] for its hostile, discriminatory, economic, and political policies towards Israel.
Israel’s own foreign ministry should take a lesson from the Trump administration. After a bitter, two-year bureaucratic and political fight, in 2017 Israel’s embassies worldwide published a paper that explained the legal validity of Israel’s settlements in Judea and Samaria. But unlike the Trump administration, the Israeli government has still not stated outright that international law is irrelevant to the cause of peace between Israel and the Palestinians.
Read more on Caroline Glick: http://carolineglick.com/pompeos-statement-on-settlements-is-a-diplomatic-turning-point/