Mr. Hugh Lovatt:

When it comes to the Irish Government's approach, there are obviously two conversations, one of which is more relevant to our current exchange. The first one is, obviously, what is the political and foreign policy approach and the second is the trade. My understanding is that the Irish Government has tended to say moving forward with perhaps more robust measures against the settlements could undermine reaching a sustainable peace agreement between the Israelis and Palestinians and could undermine Ireland's potential to play a mediating role. That was the position of the previous Government as well.

My view is clearly we need to acknowledge at the political side of things that there is a complete deadlock in negotiations but at the same time that the situation on the ground is continuing to deteriorate because of Israel's ongoing settlement policy in wanting to expunge the Palestinian leadership of its responsibilities. My belief is that before entering into a process of negotiations, and for them to be meaningful, we need to be able to create the foundations for sustainable negotiations and a core part of this is, in my view, to challenge Israel's trajectory of annexation and settlement policy. This is where the sort of policy of the requirement to trade with Israel and the Palestinians in conformity with international law has a normative and positive impact on the conflict. I see this differentiation policy and also the idea of banning settlement services and goods as something that is not only aligned with international law but can be supportive of prospects for long-term peace. Even if it provokes some backlash from the Israeli Government over the short term, it has important benefits over the longer term.