UK Bans Settlement Goods; Eight Nations Coordinate Support in Abu Dhabi Statement

Eight foreign ministers, meeting in Abu Dhabi, have issued a coordinated statement welcoming the United Kingdom’s decision to restrict imports of goods produced in illegal Israeli settlements and to limit services connected to those settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. The joint declaration, signed by the foreign affairs ministers of the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, Egypt, Indonesia, Jordan, Pakistan, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia, frames the British action as a concrete step aligned with international legal obligations and United Nations resolutions.

The ministers expressed confidence that the UK’s move could catalyze broader international action. They pointed specifically to twelve additional countries, including Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Iceland, Ireland, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, and Sweden, that intend to introduce or are actively considering national and European-level restrictions on trade with settlements deemed illegal under international law. That list of twelve also includes the United Kingdom itself.

Additional reference context is available at https://www.emirates247.com/world/joint-statement-by-8-foreign-affairs-ministers-welcomes-uks-decision-to-ban-the-import-of-goods-from-illegal-israeli-settlements/5442.

The legal grounding is explicit. The statement cites two instruments: UN Security Council resolution 2334, adopted in 2016, and the International Court of Justice Advisory Opinion issued on July 19, 2024. Both establish that states carry obligations not to recognize the legality of situations arising from Israel’s unlawful occupation and not to provide aid or assistance in maintaining conditions created by that occupation. On that basis, the ministers called on Israel to rescind all measures connected to settlement activities and other actions aimed at altering the geographic and demographic composition of the Occupied Palestinian Territory.

Gaza, the ministers stated, is an integral part of the Occupied Palestinian Territory. They called for full and immediate implementation of what they described as President Trump’s Comprehensive Plan to End the Gaza Conflict, framing that implementation as necessary to ensure security and stability, address humanitarian needs, facilitate reconstruction and recovery, and establish foundations for lasting peace.

The statement reaffirmed a two-state solution as the only viable path to a just, lasting, and comprehensive peace. The ministers specified the terms: an independent, sovereign, contiguous, and viable Palestinian State based on the June 4, 1967 lines, with East Jerusalem as its capital, in accordance with international law and relevant UN resolutions.

The joint statement, published at www.emirates247.com, represents a deliberate effort to build diplomatic momentum around the UK’s trade restrictions and push the international community toward additional concrete measures. Whether the twelve countries named in the statement move from consideration to implementation remains the open question.