Australia will not introduce a general ban on imports from settlements for now
Australia is not currently considering introducing a general ban on imports of goods from Israeli settlements in the West Bank. Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said in the Senate that the government has concerns about implementing such a step and its possible consequences for Australian businesses, Palestinians and Israelis, ABC News Australia reports.
According to Wong, the actions of the government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the West Bank, the rapid expansion of settlements, planned construction in E1 and settler violence are destroying the prospect of a two-state settlement.
UK measures
The United Kingdom has announced a ban on imports of goods from Israeli settlements. London also announced measures against individual companies and persons that provide services for settlement expansion, including in construction, infrastructure, finance and real estate. In addition, British authorities plan to ban advertising of illegal settlements in the country.
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UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband told the House of Commons that the British government's official position is that the occupation of the West Bank is illegal. He also said that the government agrees with the assessment of ethnic cleansing of Palestinians in certain areas of the West Bank, which, according to him, is being carried out by “settler terrorists.”
Settlement expansion
In March, Israel announced another 34 settlements in the West Bank and allocated billions of shekels to accelerate the development of infrastructure, roads and security systems for these sites. In August, Israeli authorities announced tenders for more than 1,200 homes in the 12-square-kilometre E1 area east of Jerusalem.
Miliband called the project a crossing of a longstanding “red line,” as it could divide the West Bank and cut it off from Jerusalem. France and Canada said they would also ban imports of goods from illegal settlements. The United States, according to Secretary of State Marco Rubio, does not plan to join the British decision and seeks to avoid destabilisation in the West Bank.
