Britain and Israel: Business as Usual

July 15, 2007
Richard Salt
British Embassy
Tel Aviv, Israel
richard.salt@fco.gov.uk

Dear Mr Salt,

Regarding your article published in Haaretz on the 11th of July 2007 "Britain and Israel: Business as usual" you ask the question: what does a "good relationship" between two countries entail? Immediately following, you make it clear that "...mutually-beneficial trade and investments" seems to be the major contributing factor to the said "good relationship." While this is often a simple indicator of a healthy relationship, th question that is neither asked in your article, nor by the British government as a whole is whether a "good" and healthy relationship ( i.e. mutually-beneficial trade and investment) should be established and/or encouraged with a country that violates both international law and internationally recognized human rights?

When discussing the recent calls for a boycott of Israeli academic institutions and Israeli goods by organizations such as the University and College Union (UCU), the Transport and General Workers Union (TGWU) and UNISON, you actively attempt to both efface their legitimacy as well as ignore their importance. You state that "attempts to boycott Israel generally fail or have no real impact on the strong ties between Britain and Israel" and that the British government "do[es] not support attempts to boycott Israeli products." As director of UK trade and investment at the British Embassy in Tel Aviv, surely you should not be trying to bury the significance of such proposals, but rather, attempt to explain the motives for these calls to boycott Israel.

Calls like those of UNISON, TGWU or the UCU, whose combined constituency number almost two and a half million, happen for a reason. The fact is that Israel is in continued violation of international law through its now 40 years of belligerent occupation of Palestinian land and countless human rights abuses. Furthermore, the construction of the wall, deemed illegal by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in 2004, has severed east Jerusalem from the West Bank and will, upon completion, de facto annex more than 10% of the West Bank, separating over 280,000 Palestinians from their land. Britain abstained from voting on the UN resolution that overwhelmingly called for the dismantling of the wall, and furthermore stated that the ICJ was not the "appropriate" arena to resolve this issue. The British government clearly regards its economic relationship with Israel as more important than the internationally afforded rights of the Palestinian people.

Britain is a nation that prides itself on its adherence to international law. It also has an obligation, however, to uphold international law on a global scale, and as a civil servant of Britain, you too are charged with this duty. If one examines British relations with apartheid South Africa, the British government imposed policy that would indicate the establishment of a "good relationship" was not only unacceptable and counterproductive, but furthermore wrong. Why, then, is Israel an exception?

Sincerely,
Palestine Monitor

Britain and Israel: Business as usual

By Richard Salt

When people talk about good relations between countries, it is important to ask exactly what that means. As I see it, mutually-beneficial trade and investment links are an important part of the "meat" of a bilateral relationship. Major British companies such as HSBC, British Airways and British Gas have interests out here, and two-way trade was close to 2.4 billion pounds sterling (around $5 billion) last year.

In addition, many Israeli companies and businessmen see the United Kingdom as an attractive place to grow and expand their businesses. The UK, as an international financial hub, is the doorway to a world of opportunities for companies and entrepreneurs. More than 200 Israeli companies have set up operations in the UK, and that number continues to rise. Another encouraging figure: close to 40 Israeli companies have already chosen the AIM stock exchange to raise capital, rather than the more expensive and distant option of the U.S.

I am well aware at the shock and anger felt here in Israel by recent attempts by a handful of British organizations, such as UNISON and the University and College Union (UCU), to push for a boycott of Israel, particularly given the warm relations between our two countries. It is important to remember that attempts to boycott Israel generally fail or have no real impact on the strong ties between Britain and Israel. The decision reached by the UCU? in late May merely calls on members to consider a boycott of Israel, and does not actually impose a boycott of Israeli academia. The motion passed by UNISON in mid-June simply reiterated the union’s long-standing policy on the Middle East & a policy that has not stopped UK-Israel trade relations, or academic links, from flourishing in recent years. Remember, too, that these boycotts in no way reflect official British government policy toward Israel. UNISON and the UCU are totally independent. The UK government cannot interfere in the their internal deliberations, but we certainly do not support attempts to boycott Israel and have made that clear. We firmly believe that the best way to solve conflicts is through negotiations and inclusive dialogue. I, therefore, firmly believe that calls from some in Israel to impose a counter boycott on the UK are highly regrettable, and I am glad to see that these calls, like those in the UK, do not seem to have broad support.

What the UK government does support is encouraging ties with Israel in key areas, such as science, education, trade and industry. These are not just words, but concrete, continuous activities. Just last month, Britain’s Minister of State for Higher Education, Bill Rammell, visited Israel to promote academic ties between our two countries. We also hosted a group of six senior British scientists who attended a conference on stem cell research at the Weizmann Institute. The UK government last year sponsored a visit by our most famous scientist, Professor Stephen Hawking, to advance cooperation between our scientific communities. And we annually sponsor scholarships for Israelis to study in the UK under our Chevening Scholarship scheme.

The scope for continued cooperation between our countries is enormous, for example, under the European 7th Framework Program. Under the 6th Framework Program, in which Israel participated as an Associated Country, there were 262 projects featuring UK and Israeli partners with contracts to the value of 1.5 billion euros. I encourage Israeli companies to keep on investing in the UK, and British companies to realize the huge R&D, investment and business opportunities that exist in Israel. We now have a new government in the UK with a new prime minister, who brings with him 10 years of experience as chancellor of the exchequer. Israel, and this region as a whole, remain a top priority for Britain . And that includes ensuring that the commercial relationship between our two countries continues to prosper.

Richard Salt is director of UK trade & investment at the British Embassy Tel Aviv.

Link to Richard Salts original article
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/879665.html

Original Haaretz Report
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/864754.html

Source: Palestine Monitor