Finland trade restrictions on Israeli settlements are now part of a joint position backed by 12 countries, after foreign ministers called for action against the expansion of Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.
Finland joined Canada, Denmark, France, Iceland, Ireland, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom in issuing a joint statement calling for measures against trade linked to settlements. The countries said each government would pursue action through its own national procedures, support restrictions at European level or consider further measures.
The announcement came as Britain moved beyond the joint statement with plans for a national ban on imports from Israeli settlements.
British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband told parliament that the UK would also introduce sanctions against companies and individuals involved in settlement expansion. The proposed measures would cover businesses providing construction or financial services to settlements, while advertising settlement properties in Britain would also be prohibited.
Britain plans to impose sanctions on settlers accused of supporting or inciting violence against Palestinians. It will also reject licence applications for arms and other exports considered to contribute materially to what the British government describes as the unlawful occupation.
Miliband said the UK now considers Israel’s occupation of the West Bank unlawful and said there was evidence of ethnic cleansing in parts of the territory. He accused violent settlers of driving Palestinians from their land and criticised the Israeli government for what he described as a failure to intervene effectively.
Israel rejects allegations that its policies amount to ethnic cleansing.
The British measures are directed specifically at Israeli settlements rather than Israeli trade as a whole. Miliband said the government did not support a general boycott of Israeli goods and would continue to support trade with Israel within its pre-1967 borders.
The proposed British import restrictions are expected to take between six and nine months to put in place, although Miliband said the government would work to introduce them sooner.
France and Canada have also announced plans for national restrictions on goods produced in Israeli settlements. Finland, however, has not announced a comparable national import ban. Its position remains part of the broader 12-country commitment, which leaves individual governments to determine whether to introduce national measures, support European action or pursue other steps.
In their joint statement, the foreign ministers called on Israel to halt settlement expansion and ensure accountability for violence committed by settlers. They also rejected actions that could amount to the annexation of Palestinian territory or the forced displacement of Palestinians.
The governments said their position was intended to protect the possibility of a two-state solution, with Israel and a Palestinian state existing alongside each other. The statement also acknowledged Israel’s security concerns and condemned the Hamas attack of 7 October 2023.
The move follows plans for additional settlement construction in the West Bank, including the proposed E1 development east of Jerusalem. The 12 countries said the project would divide parts of the West Bank and undermine the territorial basis needed for a future Palestinian state.
The British decision has drawn criticism from Israel. President Isaac Herzog called the trade restrictions a “grave miscalculation”, while Israeli ministers warned that Israel could respond with countermeasures.
Washington has also criticised the British move. US ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee warned that British companies could potentially face restrictions in US states that have anti-boycott laws.
The response has not been uniformly negative within Israel. Former prime minister Ehud Olmert supported the measures, arguing that sanctions had become unavoidable because of violence and displacement in the West Bank. He said the restrictions were aimed at those responsible for such actions rather than at Israel as a state.
Britain had already imposed sanctions on individuals and organisations accused of financing or supporting settler violence. In June, the UK and several partner countries announced asset freezes and travel restrictions against people and entities linked to attacks and the displacement of Palestinians in the West Bank.
Miliband also used his parliamentary statement to address the war in Gaza, saying there was growing evidence of possible war crimes. He stopped short of reaching a conclusion on allegations of genocide, saying Britain would await judicial processes before taking a position.
The UK continues to support proceedings before the International Court of Justice concerning the genocide allegations, while the latest settlement measures place increasing pressure on governments to distinguish between Israel’s wider economy and commercial activity connected specifically to settlements in occupied Palestinian territory.
