Scotland suspends meetings with Israel

The Scottish foreign secretary’s recent actions were criticized as the “normalization” of ties with the Jewish state

Scotland said it has suspended all meetings with Israeli officials until there is “real progress” towards peace in Gaza. The announcement follows criticism of a secret meeting between External Affairs Secretary Angus Robertson and an Israeli diplomat earlier this month.

In a statement on Monday, Robertson essentially apologized for meeting Israel’s Deputy Ambassador to the UK Daniela Grudsky Ekstein two weeks ago, insisting that it did not “represent a normalization of relations” between the Israeli and Scottish governments.

It was Ekstein who requested the meeting, Robertson said. He saw it as an “opportunity to express” Scotland’s “unwavering position on the need for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza,” the minister explained.

“No one intended that this meeting be presented as legitimizing the actions of the Israeli government in Gaza. The Scottish government has been consistent in our unequivocal condemnation of the atrocities we have witnessed in Gaza,” he added.

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“Going forward, it is clear that... it would not be appropriate to accept any invitation for a further meeting… until such time as real progress has been made towards peace.”

Robertson faced backlash from the ruling Scottish National Party (SNP), with some critics calling for him to be suspended, and describing him as “a liability.”

There has also been criticism over the “secrecy” of the meeting, as it only came to light after Grudsky posted a picture on X (formerly Twitter) alongside Robertson.

The government of the UK, of which Scotland is part, has also been calling for a ceasefire between the militant group Hamas and the Israeli armed forces.

READ MORE: Scottish nationalists accuse Israel of ‘ethnic cleansing’

British Foreign Secretary David Lammy recently visited Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories, meeting his Israeli counterpart Israel Katz and Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammed Mustafa.