With the British Government playing their hand, a distraction has been removed

For years, if not decades middle ranking civil servants at the Foreign Office have been brooding over and shuffling around policy papers that reflect these measures. Successive Israeli Ambassadors in Kensington have been cautioned that such action is forthcoming. It was a consistent menacing possibility. But now that Whitehall can no longer hold this paper tiger over Israel, we can more fully focus on the core of our mutual interests in the economic areas of greatest significance. Much growth can be achieved in collaboration on High-Tech, Cybersecurity and Pharmaceutical development.

Britain’s broader contention that the West Bank occupation is illegal shouldn’t invoke consternation either. It carries about as much actual relevance as if Israel’s government were to officially consider Northern Ireland an illegal occupation. Britain’s name is simply added to a long list of countries that have similarly reprimanded Israel to no effect. Britain’s logic is also flawed. The status of the territories is further from resolution than at any time since 1967. The promises of Oslo failed to materialize. Foreign governments espousing hollow declarations won’t achieve what even an attempted settlement didn’t realize.

Another dimension to consider are the implications of Britain’s decision for its own foreign relations. Britain’s altered stance aligns itself with the EU position, and is at odds with Washington’s policy. There is already a lack of consensus with the US on how to deal with Russia and Iran. The UK has been balancing a transatlantic tightrope since Brexit in many realms, and this latest announcement is only likely to add further strain.

Apart from appeasing the left-wing of the Labour Party, the British government’s announcement will not strengthen its position on the Palestinian issue. But it has demonstrated the utter lack of meaningful leverage that the UK can exert on Israel. This removes a cloud above this strategically important relationship – enabling energies to be directed towards the highest volume of trade, technological collaboration and intelligence sharing.