Antony J. Blinken 71st U.S. Secretary of State | Official Website
The following statement was released by the G7 Foreign Ministers of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America, along with the High Representative of the European Union.
"We, the G7 Foreign Ministers of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States of America and the High Representative of the EU, join the UN and the European Union in condemning the announcement by Finance Minister of Israel Smotrich that five outposts are to be legalized in the West Bank. We also reject the decision by the Government of Israel to declare over 1,270 hectares of land in the West Bank as ‘state lands’ – the largest such declaration of state land since the Oslo Accords – and the decision to expand existing settlements in the occupied West Bank by 5,295 new housing units and to establish three new settlements. The Government of Israel’s settlement program is inconsistent with international law and counterproductive to the cause of peace."
"We reaffirm our commitment to a lasting and sustainable peace in accordance with relevant resolutions of the UN Security Council on the basis of a two-state solution. We have therefore consistently expressed our opposition to the expansion of settlements and urge the Government of Israel to reverse this decision."
"Further, maintaining economic stability in the West Bank is critical for regional security. In this context, we take note of recent transfers of parts of clearance revenues to the Palestinian Authority but urge Israel to release all withheld clearance revenues in accordance with Paris Protocols. We also call on Israel to remove or relax measures that exacerbate economic conditions in the West Bank and ensure that correspondent banking services between Israeli and Palestinian banks remain operational with proper controls."
