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During a state visit to the Middle East this morning, Trump administration Secretary of State Mike Pompeo attended an event in the Israeli West Bank settlement of Psagot. Pompeo thus became the first American diplomat in history to set foot in an Israeli colony, that is, urban settlements built on territories that the vast majority of the international community believes to belong to the Palestinians.
Psagot, among other things, is not just any colony: being very far from Israeli territory and other colonies, it is practically linked to Ramallah, the capital of the Palestinian-controlled parastatal entity, it would have very little chance of re-entering a possible settlement agreement. peace between Israelis and Palestinians.
Until now, the United States had never allowed its officials to visit a colony in the West Bank, fearing that their presence could legitimize Israeli territorial claims, which were deemed illegitimate by major Western countries and the Arab world. During his tenure, the administration of Donald Trump, which is considered very close to Pompeo, has tried many times to legitimize the demands of the Israeli religious and nationalist right, that is, the most sensitive to the issue of recognition of settlements. However, things are expected to change radically in a couple of months when new president Joe Biden takes office.
Pompeo, in particular, visited Psagot Winery, a renowned winery in Israel. Its owners have long claimed the ability to write on their wine labels that the product comes from Israel. In 2019 they were also at the center of a case that ended up in the Court of Justice of the European Communities, which nevertheless proved them wrong and established that the origin of food products made in the colonies had to be explicitly indicated.
Pompeo also announced this morning that the Trump administration will allow settlements to use “Israel” provenance for local products exported to the United States. Experts believe the decision will serve primarily to embarrass the Biden administration, which in the coming months could cancel the measure announced today, drawing criticism from the center-right Israeli government, led by Benjamin Netanyahu.
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