EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell on Thursday criticised Israel’s “unwarranted” move to revoke the diplomatic status of Norway’s envoys to the Palestinian Authority.
“I strongly condemn this unwarranted decision, which contradicts the spirit of Oslo Accords and disproportionately disrupts the normal relations and cooperation with the Palestinian Authority,” Borrell said in a statement.
“Norway has played a major role on the Middle East Peace Process and in support of the Palestinian population,” he added.
Norway acted as the facilitator of the secret negotiations with the Palestinians which led to the Oslo Accords of the 1990s.
Borrell said he had spoken with Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide by phone after Israel’s decision and said the European Union stood in “full solidarity” with Oslo.
“Upon my instructions, the Head of the EU Delegation in Tel Aviv has conveyed our position to the Israeli Government,” Borrell said in a statement.
“This is not a bilateral question between Israel and Norway, but one of interest for all those working for peace and stability in the Middle East.”
Norway is in the European Economic Area, which allows the country to be part of the EU’s single market with the bloc’s 27 states as well as Iceland and Liechtenstein.
