US bill says will trade with EU only if it acts against BDS

A die-in outside Sainsbury’s, Whitechapel following a BDS protest inside by the London Palestine Action group, August 2014. All BDS action photos from 
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New bill in Congress prioritizes fight against BDS in EU trade talks

The US-Israel Trade and Commercial Enhancement Act, over a year in the making, calls the BDS effort across Europe “commercial discrimination.”

By Michael Wilner, JPost
February 10, 2015

WASHINGTON –Two congressmen introduced a bill on Tuesday that would condition US trade negotiations with the European Union on its efforts to quell the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement against Israel.

Authors of the bill, Congressman Peter J. Roskam (R-Illinois) and Congressman Juan Vargas (D-California), say the bill addresses an “alarming” trend throughout Europe toward “embracing” BDS.

The US-Israel Trade and Commercial Enhancement Act, over a year in the making, calls the BDS effort across Europe “commercial discrimination” in violation of EU commitments under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, a multilateral agreement on trade practices.

European nations, opposed to Israel’s settlement policies in the West Bank, would be discouraged in any future agreement from “politically motivated actions” to boycott and sanction Israel.

A principle trade negotiating objective, the bill reads, would be “to seek the elimination of politically motivated non-tariff barriers on Israeli goods, services, or other commerce imposed on the State of Israel.”

While the US president has unique authority to negotiate such agreements – the White House has been pushing for new Trans-Pacific and Trans-Atlantic partnerships since 2013 – constitutionally, Congress must ratify trade pacts with a two-thirds majority.

Alternatively, Congress can grant the president fast-track negotiating authority, which lowers the bar for passage of a trade pact through the legislature: Any deal presented under the measure cannot be amended by Congress, and requires a mere up-or-down vote.

Part of granting the president that promotion authority is the process of outlining principle objectives in trade talks.

This is where Congress sees an opportunity to leverage the White House on fighting BDS, Hill aides say.

Another concern raised in the bill is the subjugation of American persons and businesses to investigation merely for engaging in trade with Israel, as proposed by BDS advocates.

“No court in the United States may recognize or enforce any judgment which is entered by a foreign court against a United States person carrying out business operations in Israel or in any territory controlled by Israel,” the bill reads.

The movement, Roskam told The Jerusalem Post, is “a form of economic warfare aimed to cripple Israel’s economy and demonize its very existence.”

“These attacks not only threaten Israel, but commercial relations across the globe,” Roskam continued, asserting that his bill ensures “that American free trade partners never engage in this harmful and illegitimate political protest against Israel, while also protecting US companies from foreign lawsuits targeting their associations with Israel.”

Characterized foremost as trade legislation, authors of the bill expect passage to the House floor through the Committee on Ways and Means, where Roskam is a member and chairman of the committee Paul Ryan (R-Wisconsin) was thoroughly consulted on the bill’s crafting.

Also in an e-mailed statement, Vargas called BDS a “harmful political tactic.” The American Israel Public Affairs Committee supported both congressmen in their efforts.

Michael Oren, former Israeli ambassador to the United States and a listed Koolanu party candidate in Israel’s March elections, called the bill “a testament to the historical alliance between our two countries” in a letter to its authors.

“Your crucial legislation, recalling America’s earlier role in defeating the Arab boycott, represents a major contribution to Israel’s security,” Oren wrote. “Your bill will set a new and principled bar against all attempts to boycott Israel and to undermine America’s vital interests in the Middle East.”

Naftali Bennett, economy minister and leader of Jewish Home, says that EU sanctions threaten the security of Israel which is the ‘dam in the river of terror.’

EU states said to be planning fresh sanctions against Israel

Officials say new measures will go into effect if peace talks don’t resume after elections

By Judah Ari Gross, Times of Israel
February 10, 2015

European Union member states are planning new sanctions against Israel that will be implemented if peace negotiations with Palestinians do not resume following the March elections, it was reported Tuesday.

The proposed plan would include “sanctions against companies that conduct business over the Green Line, support in the legal proceedings of Palestinians in the issue of settlements and also renewing the proposal to create a Palestinian state through the Security Council,” according to an Israeli official who met recently with European leaders in Brussels, the Hebrew-language Walla website reported.

Israeli officials in several European capitals said the proposals have buy-in from all countries in the EU, according to the report.

The EU has threatened sanctions against Israel for several years in an effort to prod forward the peace process with the Palestinians and discourage settlement expansion.

According to one of the Israeli officials briefed by European leaders, the process of imposing sanctions was delayed by elections, but will likely be picked up should peace efforts not restart after Israelis go to the polls on March 17.

“For some of the countries there is the hope that after the elections there is a chance to renew the negotiations with the Palestinians. But now it does not seem like that will happen, and therefore they are planning to shift into a higher gear,” the official said.

Economy Minister Naftali Bennett told representatives of the European Union that Israel would not endanger itself to avoid sanctions, in a closed door meeting Monday.

“To single out Israel, to twist our arms economically, in the hopes that we’ll commit suicide because financially we’ll get hit if we don’t — it’s immoral from my perspective,” Bennett told the diplomats, according to a tape of the meeting leaked to Army Radio and published Tuesday. “Instead of understanding… we’re the big dam in this big river of terror.”

Bennett’s office declined to comment on his message to the representatives, which included envoys from 26 out of the 28 EU countries, and noted only that “things that were said behind closed doors should remain there.”

Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.