At a celebration of Queen Elizabeth's 87th birthday on Tuesday, British ambassador to Israel Matthew Gould said that his country "clearly and unambiguously opposes boycotts."
The British government vehemently opposes boycotts of Israel, British
Ambassador to Israel Matthew Gould affirmed Monday night "clearly and
unambiguously," as his embassy hosted a celebration of Queen Elizabeth
II's 87th birthday. "They (boycotts) do nothing to build understanding,
they put up walls when we should be tearing them down," he asserted.
While
Gould acknowledged that the two countries "don’t always agree on
everything," pointing to the issue of settlements, he said that "the
important thing is that we disagree as friends, and we will stand
alongside Israel as a friend."
Does that mean that if the European Union decides to demand the labeling of 'settlement products,' Britain will be clearly and unambiguously opposed and will refuse to comply?
Change! 'Further withdrawal of traditional British support for Israel'
This one seems to have escaped the media this week - at least here in Israel.
Queen Elizabeth visited Abu Dhabi this week and is heading to Oman from there. We knew that much already. What we may not have known is the context for this visit: An abandonment of what little support for Israel that Britain maintained and a hard shift to toeing the Arab line (Hat Tip: Russel H).
British foreign policy will change to reflect Arab concerns over the Middle East peace process as part of the Coalition's efforts to seal a strategic agreement with the Gulf during the Queen's visit to the region.
Whitehall officials said Foreign Secretary William Hague's decision to reach out to Gulf states in an effort to secure better diplomatic and trade ties meant Britain had to "take on board" Arab foreign policy goals.
Requesting better ties would be a two-way street, not just plea for more defence contracts and exports, they said.
"It will be a six lane highway with movement in both directions," said one diplomat. "We have to respond to what Gulf States want. If we want a long-term partnership on foreign policy, then changes in our stance have to be part of it."
The Queen arrived in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, at the start of a five-day visit that will also take in Oman.
...
Officials in both Abu Dhabi and London make no bones about stressing the significance of the defence relationship as the West and its regional allies gear up to a possible confrontation with Iran.
That may mean yet further withdrawal of traditional British support for Israel, with criticism of its government already more marked under Mr Hague than it was under New Labour government.
In another indication of the Foreign Office's new sensitivity to Arab opinion, officials admitted to The Daily Telegraph that policies on the Israel-Lebanon war of 2006, Israel's invasion of Gaza in 2008-9, and its occupation of the West Bank and settlements policy were "motivators" for the Islamic radicalism that they confronted daily in the Gulf.
If you're all getting the impression that the only one left on our side is God, that's probably the impression you're supposed to be getting. Isn't it great when every country thinks it's a superpower? Aren't you glad that President Obama did away with the idea of American exceptionalism?
Here's a video of the Queen visiting a mosque in Abu Dhabi, dressed in a hijab and acting like a submissive dhimmi.
Let's go to the videotape.
It sounds like the royal wedding isn't the only change taking place in London these days. What could go wrong?
UPDATE 2:08 PM
British columnist Melanie Phillips discusses this story in her Friday column.
Really, Britain is displaying the geopolitical equivalent of an auto-immune disease – attacking its friends while embracing its destroyers. One could say that it was ever thus; with the rare exception of Christian Zionist leaders such as Arthur Balfour, Britain has always sided with the Arabs believing that its national interest has always lain with them rather than with the Jews. What’s so unforgiveable is that this is now happening against the backdrop of a global campaign to delegitimise Israel in order to soften up the world for its destruction. In other words, it’s the 1930s all over again; for Britain, history is being repeated not as farce but as tragedy.
For sure, there’s another side to this: Britain and Israel remain close allies in the intelligence sphere. But Israel should surely now regard Britain rather as it presumably regards Saudi Arabia – as a hostile entity with which it sometimes has to do business.
I am an Orthodox Jew - some would even call me 'ultra-Orthodox.' Born in Boston, I was a corporate and securities attorney in New York City for seven years before making aliya to Israel in 1991 (I don't look it but I really am that old :-). I have been happily married to the same woman for thirty-five years, and we have eight children (bli ayin hara) ranging in age from 13 to 33 years and nine grandchildren. Four of our children are married! Before I started blogging I was a heavy contributor on a number of email lists and ran an email list called the Matzav from 2000-2004. You can contact me at: IsraelMatzav at gmail dot com
