Britain announced today (Tuesday) that it is freezing negotiations on a free trade agreement with Israel. But officials in Jerusalem are making it clear: this is not the suspension of an active process. In reality, the agreement was never promoted by the current British government.<\/p>\n
In a statement issued by Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs following the British announcement of sanctions, it was emphasized: \u201cEven before today\u2019s announcement \u2013 the issue had not been advanced by the current British government.\u201d In other words, Israeli officials are clarifying that the decision to freeze talks on the free trade agreement is purely symbolic and has no practical impact on economic relations between the two countries.<\/p>\n
These are empty threats The Foreign Ministry conveyed a firm and unambiguous message: \u201cThe British Mandate ended exactly 77 years ago. External pressure will not divert Israel from its path in defending its existence and security against enemies seeking its destruction.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" A Freeze Only on Paper \u2013 Jerusalem Unimpressed by British Gesture.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":40,"featured_media":23768,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5,8,65],"tags":[5846,4562,3153,3538,3626,1480,3405,2690,5847,5317],"class_list":["post-23766","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-economy","category-politics","category-world","tag-britain","tag-diplomacy","tag-economy","tag-foreign-policy","tag-free-trade","tag-israel","tag-ministry-of-foreign-affairs","tag-sanctions","tag-trade-agreement","tag-uk-israel-relations"],"yoast_head":"\n
\n<\/strong>Israeli officials stress that the agreement is designed for the mutual benefit of both countries. If the British government chooses to harm its own economy because of \u201canti-Israel obsession and internal political considerations\u201d \u2013 that is its own decision.<\/p>\n