Israeli FM: We will never stop building in Jerusalem

Published November 16th, 2014 - 01:00 GMT
Al Bawaba
Al Bawaba

Israel will not stop building in any Jewish neighborhoods of Jerusalem, said Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman in response to continued international criticism of such activity over the pre-1967 lines in Israel’s capital.

“Anyone who dreams that the government of Israel will cave [to pressure] and will limit building in Jerusalem is mistaken,” Liberman said as he met with German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier.

“We are prepared to defend our independence and sovereignty and there will be no compromise to that stance,” he said.

“Any pressure to the contrary will be very counterproductive,’ Liberman added. 

“We will never accept any definition of building in Jewish neighborhoods in Jerusalem as settlement activity. There is broad consensus for that stand among Jews in Israel and abroad,” Liberman said.

He told Steinmeier that European foreign ministers should take this into account when they meet in Brussels on Monday to discuss the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

“The left-wing, the center and the right-wing in Israel won’t accept that building in Ramot or Gilo or east Talpiot is settlement building,” he said.

In general, Liberman said, he believed that attempts to link the Israel-Palestinian conflict to Israeli bilateral ties to the EU, including to Germany, was  misguided.

It does not contribute to the stability, the normalization or the enhancement of the relationship between Israelis and Palestinians, Liberman said.

Steinmeier said, “Avigdor Liberman, my friend, I can promise you do not need to worry about the meeting of the EU foreign ministers. I anticipate that when we meet, on Monday, we’ll speak of the hope that peace can be achieved,” he said.  

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