By IRNA,
Berlin : The construction of Israeli settlements in the West Bank and Jerusalem pose an obstacle to progress in the Middle East peace process, said German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier following a meeting with his Moroccan counterpart Taieb Fassi Fihri in Berlin on Tuesday.
Germany’s top diplomat branded the ongoing construction of new Jewish settlements as not helpful for the slow-paced Mideast peace talks.
Israel has repeatedly faced international criticism over its aggressive Jewish settlement policy in the Palestinian territories.
The German government had in the past strongly criticized plans by Israel to expand settlements in the West Bank and disputed east Jerusalem, terming it “unacceptable.”
Berlin had stressed that the expansion of the Israeli settlements “questioned the viability of a viable Palestinian state.”
The US and the European Union had time and again demanded a settlement construction stop.