"We won't accept any limitation on building in Jewish areas of Jerusalem and there will be no compromise about it," Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said Sunday at a news conference with his visiting German counterpart Frank-Walter Steinmeier.
"It must be clear to everyone that Israel will never accept a definition of construction in Jewish neighborhoods in Jerusalem as 'settlement activity,' because there is a broad consensus in Israel where Jews agree, left, right and center, on this, and it hopes that the European Union will take this into account," Liberman added, saying the concept is a "distortion of reality."
"Anyone who thinks that the Israeli government is about to give in and limit construction in Jerusalem is wrong, we will defend our independence and sovereignty,’’ he said.
Lieberman's comments came as, according to a report in Israeli daily Haaretz, which quoted European diplomats and senior Israeli officers, the European Union’s foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini has drafted a proposal detailing sanctions to be placed against Israel in response to settlement activity in the West Bank that, in her opinion, are likely to render a two-state solution impossible.
Sanctions mentioned by the document include marking products manufactured in the settlements in EU supermarkets; limiting cooperation with Israel in various areas; and restrictions on the free-trade agreement with Israel, according to the newspaper.
The reports indicate that the 28 member-country representatives who received the proposal were asked not to reveal its details to Israel at this time. Three European diplomats and two senior Israeli officers all spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitive nature of the subject.
The 28 EU Foreign Ministers are to meet Monday in Brussels for their monthly discussion of top foreign policy issues. Over lunch, they will have an exchange of views on the situation in the Middle East following a debriefing by Mogherini about her recent visit to Israel and the Palestinian Territories. The ministers will issue conclusions after their meeting.
Mogherini earlier this week called on Israel to put an end to its settlement policy in East Jerusalem and the West Bank. ‘’The international community, starting from the EU, is engaged in providing assistance for the rehabilitation of Gaza and help the parties to restart a peace process, but this decision (to build new houses in Ramat Shlomo neighbourhood of Jerusalem) represents yet another highly detrimental step which undermines the prospects for a two-state solution and seriously calls into question Israel’s commitment to a peaceful negotiated settlement with the Palestinians,’’ she said.
During his visit to the region, Steinmeier will also meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and is due to meet Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas and other officials in Ramallah.