US and UK express opposition to security cabinet decision to expand Israeli control over Judea and Samaria

Following the announcement by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and Defense Minister Israel Katz of moves designed to strengthen Israeli control over Judea and Samaria – known internationally as the West Bank – U.S. and UK authorities issued condemnations on Monday evening. 

A White House official on Monday reiterated U.S. President Donald Trump's opposition to Israel annexing the West Bank, Reuters reported. 

“A stable West Bank keeps Israel secure and is in line with this administration’s goal to achieve peace in the region,” the official was quoted as saying. 

This statement is in line with previous statements by officials from the administration of President Donald Trump. 

In October, Vice President JD Vance expressed opposition to an attempt by the Knesset to impose annexation on parts of Judea and Samaria. 

“The West Bank is not going to be annexed by Israel,” Vance said at the time. “The policy of President Trump is that the West Bank will not be annexed. This will always be our policy.” 

However, the statement did not directly address the actual measures approved by the security cabinet, which largely involved opening territory in Judea and Samaria to private purchasers. The decisions would allow potential buyers to look up current landowners in registries, and initiate contact regarding purchase offers. 

Previously, special licenses were required to buy land in Judea and Samaria, and only companies or other entities were allowed to make real estate purchases. Additionally, a Jordanian-era law, prohibiting the purchase of land in Judea and Samaria by non-Arabs, was repealed. 

The British government released an even stronger statement than the U.S. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), “strongly condemned” the security cabinet decision in a statement released on Monday evening. 

“The major changes to land, enforcement, and administrative powers proposed in the West Bank will harm efforts to advance peace and stability,” it claimed. 

The FCDO statement also said that “any unilateral attempt to alter the geographic or demographic make-up of Palestine is wholly unacceptable and would be inconsistent with international law. We call on Israel to reverse these decisions immediately.” 

The declaration of Judea and Samaria as Palestine in the FCDO statement would appear to an unlawful attempt to stipulate the borders of a future Palestinian state. According to the Oslo Accords agreement between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), the borders of such a state can only be determined by negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians. 

“A two-state solution remains the only viable path to long-term peace with a safe and secure Israel living alongside a viable and sovereign Palestine,” the statement concluded. 

Earlier Monday, foreign ministers from Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Indonesia, Pakistan, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Egypt released a joint statement condemning the security cabinet decision, which they described as “illegal Israeli decisions and measures aimed at imposing unlawful Israeli sovereignty.” 

European Union spokesman Anouar El Anouni also criticized the move, calling it “another step in the wrong direction.” 

However, Israeli journalist Amit Segal praised the government’s decision to move gradually, and for choosing to tackle the issue of real estate purchases as the next step in extending greater Israeli control over the disputed territories. 

Segal said such a move “avoids a dramatic confrontation” over the controversial topic of applying Israeli sovereignty, and at the same time, “makes it harder for international and domestic opposition to coalesce against all of the minor policies.” 

“It will be more difficult to mobilize foreign opposition against repealing anti-Semitic real estate laws than it was to stop the countdown to Netanyahu’s annexation in 2020,” he wrote in a post to social media.