Avi Benlolo: Sanctions against Israeli settlements expose the deep rot in Ottawa

There is a deep rot in this country. In the middle of a trade war with our greatest ally, the United States, our government has also initiated another trade war — this time with one of its historically closest allies in the Middle East, Israel. On Tuesday, the Government of Canada announced, through a series of statements, that it will impose trade restrictions on so-called Israeli settlements. In other words, on Jews.

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Canada’s government is failing to work diplomatically, bilaterally and professionally. Instead, it is blowing up decades of positive relations with Israel. This is negligence. Alongside a joint statement issued by Canada, the United Kingdom and several other European countries, Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand stated on social media that, “In the coming months, we will introduce restrictions on trade in goods with settlements in the West Bank that are illegal under international law.”

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But wait, there’s more ridiculousness. As if Anand’s statement wasn’t clear enough in its attack on the one and only Jewish state, Prime Minister Mark Carney, along with his counterparts in Britain and France, also directed fire at Israel using stronger language: “Canada, France and the U.K. will therefore take steps to ban the importation of goods from settlements and enforce targeted measures against settlements.”

Any casual observer must inquire as to why is our government is relentlessly and disproportionately picking on Israel. The International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s working definition of antisemitism, which was adopted by the Government of Canada, states that applying double standards with respect to Israel is antisemitic. Needless to say, boycotts of Israeli companies in the West Bank have proven to harm the livelihoods of Palestinian workers more than Israelis, as they force companies to simply relocate to Israel proper, thus precipitating Palestinian job losses, as was the case with SodaStream.

Israel could fit inside Canada roughly 450 times. But you wouldn’t know it given the outsized criticism Israel gets from our own government. There seems to be a drunken state of hatred not based on rationality and diplomacy, but on some kind of vicious vendetta that is harmful to our own national interests. Let’s be honest here: Canada wants to put down a productive country that is contributing to the world. Israel is producing more economic output per person than is Canada — approximately US$60,300 (C$83,300) per capita compared with US$55,700 in Canada.

Worse, Ottawa’s proposed ban on goods from Israeli settlements raises serious questions about whether they would be legal under the terms of the Canada-Israel Free Trade Agreement. The agreement applies to “the territory where (Israel’s) customs laws are applied” — which has always included the West Bank.

Canada is both claiming to defend a rules-based international order, while potentially disregarding a binding free-trade agreement it freely negotiated with Israel. Our government cites international law to argue against settlements but at the same time, Canada was a proponent of the Oslo Accords, which left the matter of disputed territories to final-status negotiations. Our government, in other words, is attempting to undermine the established accords, which constitute the relevant international law and are the only recognized path toward a genuine two-state solution.

By issuing consecutive statements threatening Israel, our government has demonstrated disproportionate criticism of the Jewish state that borders on antisemitism. It’s not only jeopardizing Canadian business interests but is going against our government’s own legally binding trade agreement with Israel, while further showcasing Ottawa’s misunderstanding of international law vis-à-vis the disputed territories.

Some say Canada is meddling in Israel’s elections. I say it’s time for Canada to start acting like a grown-up by re-engaging professionally with Israel rather than acting out and stomping its feet through statements that may appease the Islamists at home, but will have zero impact in Israel.

National Post

Avi Benlolo is the chairman and CEO of the Abraham Global Peace Initiative, a Canadian think-tank.

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