Israel is “temporarily reducing” ties with 10 countries that voted for the UN Security Council resolution demanding a halt to settlement building in the Palestinian territories, Israel’s foreign ministry said Tuesday.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Emmanuel Nahshon refuted reports that Israel was suspending ties with the countries – but said Israel was “temporarily reducing” visits and work with embassies, Agence France-Presse reported.
The countries were Britain, France, Russia, China, Japan, Ukraine, Angola, Egypt, Uruguay and Spain.
“Until further notice, we’ll limit our contacts with the embassies here in Israel and refrain from visits of Israeli officials to those states, and of visits of officials from those states here,” he told AFP.
The diplomatic discord comes after Friday’s vote on the resolution, in which 14 of 15 Security Council members demanded “Israel immediately and completely cease all settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territory, including east Jerusalem.”
Meanwhile, the emboldened Palestinian president said Tuesday that he hoped a Mideast conference in France on Jan. 15 will set a timetable for independence.
“The decision lays the foundation for any future serious negotiation … and it paves the way for the international peace conference slated to be held in Paris next month,” President Mahmoud Abbas said in his first public remarks since the UN vote.
“We hope this conference comes up with a mechanism and timetable to end the occupation,” Abbas told a meeting of his Fatah party. “The (resolution) proves that the world rejects the settlements, as they are illegal.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly called on Abbas to meet for direct talks without preconditions. Abbas has refused unless Israel first ends settlement construction.
But, despite the resolution, Israel is advancing plans for thousands of new homes in east Jerusalem, where Palestinians want to establish their future capital.
The Jerusalem District Zoning Committee plans to meet Wednesday to discuss approving construction in that part of the city, the pro-Netanyahu daily Israel Hayom reported.
The Palestinians claim the West Bank and East Jerusalem — home to Jewish, Muslim and Christian holy sites— as parts of their future state.
The US abstained, declining to use its veto power, enraging Netanyahu, who’s had a frosty relationship with President Obama.
Netanyahu, who also serves as foreign minister, has asked officials to visit the countries that voted for the controversial resolution as little as possible for now.
At least two trips have been canceled or postponed, including this week’s visit to Israel by Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman and a visit soon by the Senegalese foreign minister.
Israel has summoned back its ambassadors to New Zealand and Senegal for consultations, and canceled aid programs with the African state, AFP reported.
On Tuesday, Israel also informed Angola it would be freezing its aid program there, Nahshon said.
According to some reports, Netanyahu also planned to call off a meeting with British Prime Minister Theresa May at next month’s World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, but there has been no official confirmation.
Deputy Foreign Minister Tzipi Hotovely said Tuesday she was concerned that canceling visits would lead Israel to miss opportunities to explain itself — but that she supported making clear “you can’t take Israel for granted.”
Countries should not be able to “make pilgrimages to Israel to learn about fighting terror, cyber-defense and agricultural technologies, and in the UN do whatever you want,” she told Israeli army radio.
Netanyahu and other Israeli officials have blasted the Security Council resolution and the Whitye House abstention.
Netanyahu has alleged that Obama “colluded” to see the “shameful” resolution – the first since 1979 to condemn Israel’s settlement policies — through in the final days of his administration.
President-elect Donald Trump has slammed the White House for not having the back of its longtime Mideast ally.
Netanyahu was so outraged by the UN vote that he summoned Dan Shapiro, the US ambassador to Israel, to protest the administration’s role.
Israel’s Foreign Ministry also called on the other countries on the Security Council – including the permanent members – Russia, Great Britain, France and China – who could have vetoed the resolution.
Meanwhile, former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s former chief of staff said Tuesday that Netanyahu’s response is helping fulfill the Palestinian dream of isolating Israel around the world.
“I see [Netanyahu’s] response mainly as ridiculous. The attempt to create symmetry between us and the rest of the world and to punish the 14 countries that voted against us is actually making the Palestinian dream of isolating Israel internationally into reality,” Dov Weisglass said on army radio, The Jerusalem Post reported.
Summoning ambassadors to be reprimanded was a display of “rudeness” on Netanyahu’s part, he said.
“To summon foreign ambassadors on a Sunday, especially on Christmas, is simply an elementary lack of manners. I think these reprimands are making people laugh in the foreign embassies involved. Even Senegal is not scared,” Weisglass added.
With Post Wires