European Coalition for Israel

ECI calls upon EU leaders to respect the Oslo accords and avoid unilateral statements on future status of Jerusalem

Brussels, 3 December, 2009 – European Coalition for Israel has today in an open letter to the Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt urged the Swedish government to reconsider the proposed unilateral declaration for a Palestinian state and for East-Jerusalem as its future capital. The Swedish government, which currently holds the rotating EU presidency, has written a draft document which will be discussed next week on Monday and Tuesday at a meeting with EU-foreign ministers in Brussels, after which a statement outlining EU’s Middle East policy is expected.

No legal excuse for Swedish Foreign Minister

No legal excuse for Swedish Foreign Minister Bildt to refrain from criticizing blood libel article in Aftonbladet

Stockholm 12 November 2009 – “There were no constitutional restraints for Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt to comment or criticize the publication of the article in Aftonbladet in August that suggested that Israeli soldiers were trafficking human organ from Palestinians. When the article appeared in the Swedish tabloid Aftonbladet on 17 August, Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt refused to distance himself from the text by explaining that “any comment from his side may be in contradiction with the Swedish constitution which forbids government leaders from interfering with freedom of the press.”

But Swedish Chancellor of Justice Göran Lambertz clearly rejected this interpretation of the Swedish constitution as he spoke at a symposium in the Swedish parliament yesterday.

ECI calls on the new European Commission for a fresh start in EU-Israeli relations

- Rejecting the Goldstone report is a good first step, says ECI director.

Brussels 17 September 2009 – As the president of the European Commission Jose Manuel Barroso on Wednesday was officially confirmed for a second term by the European Parliament, the European Coalition for Israel sent an official acknowledgment congratulating him for his new term and calling for a fresh start also in EU-Israeli relations.