Tuesday, July 21, 2015

EU to reemphasize decision to start “full and effective” labeling of goods from Jewish settlements

The EU is incapable or sorting out its problems (mass unemployment, poverty, mass immigration, Greek crisis, French social unrest, rise in populist parties etc) but can't stop meddling and interfering in Israel internal affairs.

The Jewish Press reports:

In a few months, the EU will enact its plan to label products made in the Jewish towns and villages of Judea, Samaria and east Jerusalem, the Financial Times reported Sunday.

Apparently, over the past three years, the European Commission has delayed issuing proper technical guidelines on the labeling of the Jewish-produced goods, fearing that the move would “backfire” over in Israel.

But now, according to the report, the EU has decided to put aside pressing issues such as the collapsing economies of Greece, the Ukraine, Spain and Portugal, and focus its efforts on issuing a directive which Brussels “insists is a purely administrative document.”

David Walzer, Israel’s ambassador to the EU, described the initiative as “a European attempt to politically pressure Israel on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict by using economic means of questionable legality.”  Walzer argued the labels are an attempt by “to de facto determine the boundaries of Israel while it is up to the parties involved to decide,” and warned that “nothing good or constructive can come out of going down that road.”

But the EU foreign ministers, slated to meet in Brussels on Monday, are planning to reemphasize their decision to start “full and effective” labeling of goods from Jewish settlements. This is in accord with a letter signed in April by 16 foreign ministers, including France and the UK, telling EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini to make clear that products from Jewish settlements are illegal.

The EU has prepared measures making it possible to track postal codes, to make sure goods shipped from Jewish settlements do not enjoy duty-free status under the EU free-trade agreement with Israel.  More.

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