US did not release statement against settlement import restrictions — Jerusalem Post
In early September, officials in Washington and Jerusalem prepared a draft statement on behalf of Secretary of State Marco Rubio regarding plans by the United Kingdom, France and Canada to block imports of goods from Israeli settlements in the West Bank. The document was never released, Reuters reported, with the information published by the Jerusalem Post.
There was no White House support
According to three people familiar with the matter, the draft was not supported by the White House or senior leadership at the US State Department. Two sources said that the preparation of the September 8 document was pushed by David Milstein, an influential aide to US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee.
In the draft reviewed by Reuters, Rubio was proposed to describe the actions of the three countries as a series of hostile steps against Israel that contribute to antisemitism. The document also said that these methods follow the approaches of the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement, which was described in the text as antisemitic.
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Rubio's comment
On September 8, speaking to reporters in Florida before a trip to Latin America, Rubio did not directly criticize the decision by the United Kingdom or other countries. He said that the United States would not do what Britain had done, but gave no further comment.
A senior US official, responding to a Reuters inquiry, said that the draft had not been prepared in coordination with the State Department or the White House. The US Embassy in Israel referred requests for comment from Huckabee and Milstein to the State Department, while the White House did not respond to the inquiry.
Previously, US President Donald Trump had spoken out against the expansion of settlements, but according to the publication, his administration did not exert significant pressure on Israel to change this policy. Huckabee, who supports settlements, publicly condemned violence by Jewish settlers against Palestinians and called for those responsible to be held accountable.
