British diplomats are refusing to sign an Israeli-Palestinian peace proposal developed at an international conference in Paris, and say any deal requires direct negotiation between the two parties and the involvement of President-elect Trump’s team.
“We have particular reservations about an international conference intended to advance peace between the parties that does not involve them — indeed which is taking place against the wishes of the Israelis — and which is taking place just days before the transition to a new American President when the U.S. will be the ultimate guarantor of any agreement,” the U.K.’s Foreign and Commonwealth Office said in a Sunday press statement.
The UK’s refusal to sign on the Paris communique is another olive branch to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government, which refused to participate in the conference. British Prime Minister Theresa May previously criticized Secretary of State John Kerry’s speech explaining why the Obama administration refused to veto a UN resolution condemning Israeli settlements, even though the U.K. voted in favor of the resolution.
Israel opposed the United Nations resolution and refused to attend the Paris conference, and said both would hurt future negotiations by imposing a solution to the impasse. The United Kingdom adopted that position on Sunday.
“There are risks therefore that this conference hardens positions at a time when we need to be encouraging the conditions for peace,” the statement said.
That’s a victory for Israeli diplomats, who worried that the Paris document might be used to form the basis of a United Nations Security Council resolution that would tilt a future negotiating table towards the Palestinians. “This conference is among the last twitches of yesterday’s world,” Netanyahu said. “Tomorrow’s world will be different — and it is very near.”
Kerry assured Netanyahu that “the U.S. would oppose any proposal that may be put forward to the Security Council,” according to a statement released by Netanyahu’s office.
