Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen says Denmark will not impose an immediate national boycott of goods from Israeli settlements, arguing that any such decision belongs in the EU.
Denmark and 11 other countries issued a joint statement on Tuesday demanding an immediate stop to further Israeli settlement construction in the occupied West Bank. Speaking to P1 Morgen on Wednesday, DR reports that Denmark will not follow France, Canada and the United Kingdom in announcing a direct import ban.
According to Lars Løkke Rasmussen, Danish trade policy is conducted through the EU under current rules. He said the Danish government fully supports a boycott of settlement goods, but that the EU is the correct place to adopt it.
The signatories are the United Kingdom, Canada, France, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Ireland, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain and Sweden. Per the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, the countries confirmed their intention to introduce national restrictions or support European restrictions on trade with settlements that are illegal under international law.
The same statement cited the E1 settlement project and settler violence among the reasons for acting. Reuters reported that Britain, France and Canada separately announced import bans, while Denmark and the other states backed the joint text without national measures.
Legal options being mapped
Løkke said it is legally unclear whether an EU member state can use exemption clauses to act alone on the question. He said he wants to help examine that in detail.
He added that Denmark has always held the line that sanctions must be carried out collectively to work. Acting unilaterally at the edge of EU rules would cross a significant line of principle, he said, though he did not rule it out entirely.
The government is currently mapping which options are available, according to Løkke. He said the European Commission is examining whether sanctions could be adopted by qualified majority instead of unanimity.
Løkke said the process is not yet complete, but that there is movement. He said he hopes the joint statement can also help shift Germany’s position, which he described as restrained for historical reasons rather than out of disagreement.
Signal over E1 plans
Even without a Danish boycott in the near future, Løkke said the joint statement sends an unambiguous political signal to Israel. He pointed to Israel’s approval of the E1 plans, which he said would effectively cut the West Bank in two.
The E1 project covers around 3,400 homes on 12 square kilometers next to East Jerusalem, and is in breach of international law. The EU has previously condemned the plans, DR notes.
Løkke said Denmark must speak out against the construction while maintaining that it remains a friend of Israel. He said Denmark wants an Israel that has the possibility to exist.
