From the Liveblog of
Thursday, December 17, 2015
US lawmakers slam European call to label West Bank products
A group of US congresspeople introduced a resolution expressing opposition to European Commission guidelines which call for labeling imported Israeli products made in the West Bank.
“New European Commission guidelines to single out Israeli products manufactured in the West Bank and other areas only encourage and prompt consumers to boycott all Israeli goods,” reads the resolution by Nita Lowey (D-NY), Peter Roskam (R-IL), Eliot Engel (D-NY), and Ed Royce (R-CA).
“This is counterproductive to the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, harmful to US national security interests, and contributes to the deeply misguided anti-Israel Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement.”
“Boycotts chip away at economic integration, which negatively affects Israelis and Palestinians alike. The establishment of the European Economic Community was predicated on the notion that peace and security are achieved through trade, economic cooperation, and job creation – not boycotts and isolation. The same is true for Israelis and Palestinians.”
