Statement by Press Secretary/Director-General for Press and Public Relations, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on the announcement of the Government of Israel regarding the construction of housing units at settlements in the West Bank

June 16, 2008

The Government of Japan is concerned about the announcement of the Government of Israel regarding the construction of 1300 houses at settlement in the West Bank against repeated requests from the international community, and calls upon the Government of Israel to immediately review such plan of the construction as it might have negative impacts on the current peace process.
Especially while the peace negotiations between the Israeli and the Palestinian sides, relaunched by the Annapolis Conference, have been continuing, such unilateral repeated measures of the housing constructions in the controversial settlements since December of last year, might further undermine the momentum for peace and could never make any constructive contribution to the confidence-building between the parties concerned.
As Japan hopes that a peace agreement will be reached as soon as possible and peaceful co-existence and co-prosperity will be realized between the Israelis and the Palestinians, we strongly hope that the Israeli side will fulfill the Road Map obligations and will make due efforts with maximum self-restraints and good-faith for the bilateral negotiations in order not to deteriorate the situation on the ground.

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