On Friday 31 March, High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini spoke out against the decisions of the Israeli government the previous day to establish a new settlement deep inside the West Bank, to issue tenders for nearly 2,000 housing units in the settlements, and to declare further land in the West Bank as "state land".
These decisions "threaten to further undermine prospects for a viable two-state solution, which remains the only realistic way to fulfil the aspirations of both sides and achieve just and lasting peace on the basis of a negotiated agreement between both parties", Mogherini said in a press release.
The settlements, which are illegal under international law, "constitute an obstacle to peace and threaten to make a two-state solution impossible", Mogherini said, calling on Israel to end all settlement activity and to dismantle the outposts erected since March 2001 in line with prior obligations.
While taking note of the reports that Israel intends to significantly restrict future settlement construction in view of advancing Israeli-Palestinian peace, Mogherini warned that "affirmative steps are badly needed in order to reverse the negative trends that are imperilling the two-state solution and thereby create a political climate conducive to resuming meaningful and credible negotiations". "We expect declarations of intent to be followed by actions on the ground", she added.
The new settlement, known as Geulat Tzion and situated in the north of Ramallah, is the first to be authorised by the Israeli government in about 20 years. It is expected to host around 40 families who were expelled from the Amona settlement last February. Alongside this, Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that Israel would limit new installations in the West Bank "to the extent that this is possible". (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)