New York [USA], Dec. 27 : Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered the Foreign Ministry to temporarily limit all working ties with the embassies of the 12 United Nation Security Council (UNSC) members, who voted in favor of Friday's resolution on West Bank settlements.
Two senior Israeli officials said businesses with the embassies of those countries - Britain, France, Russia, China, Japan, Ukraine, Angola, Egypt, Uruguay, Spain, Senegal and New Zealand - will be suspended, reports the CNN.
The move will include Netanyahu not meeting with the Foreign Ministers of these countries and their ambassadors will not be received at Israel's Foreign Ministry.
In addition, travel by Israeli ministers to these countries will also be limited, the officials said, noting that Israeli ambassadors will still continue to working with the governments of their host nations.
The move came after ten ambassadors were summoned, under orders by Netanyahu, to the Foreign Ministry for a personal rebuke over the vote.
The UN resolution passed last week demanded the halt of settlement activity by Israel on occupied Palestinian territory with 14 votes after the United States abstained from voting.
The resolution states that settlements in the West Bank "had no legal validity, constituting a flagrant violation under international law and a major obstacle to the vision of two States living side-by-side in peace and security." However, Netanyahu's action is a diplomatic move, which is unlikely to have any practical effect on either Israel or the other countries, as it does not affect trade, security coordination or other aspects of the relations.
Source: ANI
