US warns Government not to push Occupied Territories Bill type action in Europe

The US embassy has warned the Government not to push initiatives similar to the Occupied Territories Bill at European level.In a shot across the Government’s bows the embassy said it “risks real unintended consequences, particularly for nearly 1,000 US companies and the hundreds of thousands of Irish jobs tied to them”.In a statement on Friday evening the embassy warned: “If the goal is to make a meaningful difference for Palestinians, the focus should be on co-ordinated international efforts that deliver real impact, not symbolic measures that harm Ireland’s economy and will not advance peace. “We urge Ireland to avoid pushing similarly unhelpful initiatives at the EU level.”READ MOREMinister for Foreign Affairs Helen McEntee, welcoming the passage of the legislation last week, highlighted Ireland and the EU’s position, saying it “is clear – settlements are illegal under international law and undermine the realisation of the two-state solution”.“A commitment to the rule of international law is one of the core principles of Irish foreign policy,” she said. “We will continue to work for a comprehensive, just and lasting peace based on the two-state solution that guarantees the right of both Israelis and Palestinians to self-determination, and to live in peace and safety within secure borders.“I will keep working towards this aim with international partners, including at the EU level where we will continue to push for the EU to take concrete actions required to ensure compliance with international law and to support the goal of a two-state solution.”The US embassy statement came after President Catherine Connolly on Thursday signed the Bill – formally known as the Israeli Settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (Prohibition of Importation of Goods) Bill 2026 – into law this week.It bans trade in goods but not services with illegal Israeli settlements on Palestinian land.In November last year the US state department first publicly and directly criticised plans for the legislation, describing it as “unhelpful virtue signalling”. It marked an escalation in US opposition to the proposed law.Previously the Bill had been subjected to criticism by pro-Israel groups in the US, and also by groups of congressional representatives. A spokesman for the US state department – which is responsible for relations between Washington and the rest of the world – told US pro-Israel news service JNS at the time: “This legislation is unhelpful virtue signalling. It does not serve the cause of peace in the Middle East, which the US and partners are advancing ... and could moreover adversely affect American businesses operating in Ireland. We are monitoring developments closely.”Last month, before the Bill was passed, another US congressman renewed a call for it to be withdrawn. Democratic congressman Josh Gottheimer was behind a letter – cosigned by 22 other members of Congress – which was sent to Taoiseach Micheál Martin, warning of damage to Irish-US relations if the Government proceeded with the legislation.Before the Occupied Territories Bill was debated in the Dáil, Gottheimer again called for the Bill to be withdrawn.[ US congressman renews call for Occupied Territories Bill to be withdrawnOpens in new window ]In a post on X, he wrote: “In October, I led a bipartisan letter urging Ireland not to move forward with its Occupied Territories Bill”, which he claimed is “an anti-Israel Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) measure”.He described the legislation as a “one-sided measure that singles out Israel while ignoring territorial disputes everywhere else in the world.“And, it could come with a real cost. US companies in Ireland could be forced to choose between complying with Irish law and complying with anti-boycott laws in thirty-eight American states.”