{"id":509026,"date":"2025-10-18T08:55:10","date_gmt":"2025-10-18T08:55:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/509026\/"},"modified":"2025-10-18T08:55:10","modified_gmt":"2025-10-18T08:55:10","slug":"revealed-uk-foreign-office-staff-pushed-for-israel-trip-despite-suspension-of-trade-talks-foreign-policy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/509026\/","title":{"rendered":"Revealed: UK Foreign Office staff pushed for Israel trip despite suspension of trade talks | Foreign policy"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Foreign Office recommended that David Lammy endorse a trade mission to Israel<\/a>, days after he suspended trade talks and rebuked the country\u2019s government, internal documents reveal.<\/p>\n

In an unusual move, officials asked for ministerial advice over Ian Austin\u2019s visit to Israel<\/a> in late May. Bureaucratic dysfunction meant the trip by the trade envoy went ahead without the support of ministers or advisers.<\/p>\n

The Foreign Office had said the peer would not meet any representatives of the Israeli government. But photographs show him with senior Israeli trade officials on two occasions.<\/p>\n

Austin also went to a reception at the British embassy where the education minister, Yoav Kisch, gave a speech.<\/p>\n

Emails show that Foreign Office officials recommended ministers endorse the visit despite Lammy, who was foreign secretary at the time, suspending talks on a free trade agreement on 20 May.<\/p>\n

In a submission prepared for Lammy and Falconer about why the trip should go ahead, a Foreign Office staffer wrote: \u201c[British embassy] Tel Aviv report that the business community in Israel are agitated by yesterday\u2019s announcement. If we were to turn off this visit now, cancelling several visits and meetings, it would send a bad signal.\u201d<\/p>\n

The official said the visit would give Austin the opportunity \u201cto explain to Israeli civil society and business \u2026 that nothing has changed in our existing trading relationship\u201d and concluded: \u201cWe recommend the visit goes ahead. Do you agree?\u201d<\/p>\n

Lammy and Falconer did not receive the official\u2019s submission or endorse the trip, a source has told the Guardian. The ministers were unhappy about this, the source added.<\/p>\n

One of Austin\u2019s meetings was with Rafael, an Israeli arms company which acquired Pearson Engineering of the UK in September 2022.<\/p>\n

Ian Austin, second from right, with Yifat Alon Perel, centre, who is the deputy director of Israel\u2019s foreign trade administration. Photograph: LinkedIn<\/p>\n

As well as the Iron Dome air defence system, Rafael develops Spike missiles that appear to have been used by the Israel Defense Forces against targets including a convoy of ambulances in November 2023<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Experts told the Times<\/a> and the BBC<\/a> that the missiles were used in an IDF drone strike in April 2024 that killed seven World Central Kitchen aid workers, including three British citizens.<\/p>\n

On 28 May, Austin met a Rafael executive responsible for international business development. He was given an overview of the company before an \u201copen discussion on UK-Israel relations, policy, joint R&D and export opportunities from the UK\u201d, according to a briefing pack prepared by officials. The document was released to the Guardian in response to a freedom of information request.<\/p>\n

Further details of the meeting were redacted by officials but the pack included lines for Austin to take if asked about export licences and trade talks, indicating the subjects that officials expected might come up.<\/p>\n

Henry Dyer get in touch embed<\/a><\/p>\n

The British embassy in Israel publicised some details of Austin\u2019s visit at the time, leading to criticism of apparent incoherence in foreign policy given Lammy\u2019s sharp rebuke of the Israeli government days earlier. The trip was described as one focused on meeting businesses.<\/p>\n

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The revelation that Austin met Rafael executives \u2013 and that the Foreign Office sought to approve the whole trip, including this meeting, in advance \u2013 will spark fresh questions about the government\u2019s relationship with Israel and its defence industry.<\/p>\n

The documents also raise questions about briefings from the Foreign Office after details of the trip came out.<\/p>\n

In the draft submission to Lammy and Falconer, an official noted that \u201cLord Austin will not be meeting any representatives from the Israeli government\u201d. When the trip became public, sources claimed he had no scheduled meetings with Israeli officials.<\/p>\n

But a photograph shared by a senior British embassy official of Austin\u2019s visit to Haifa on 26 May shows him near Lena Zeiger, an Israeli official responsible for trade policy and international agreements.<\/p>\n

Zeiger was also present at a reception held the following day at the British ambassador\u2019s residence in Tel Aviv to mark King Charles\u2019s birthday. Austin attended this event.<\/p>\n

Kisch spoke at the reception and, according to the Jerusalem Post, the education minister referred to \u201ca strategic and enduring partnership, anchored in a commitment to democratic principles and international cooperation\u201d. His audience included Austin, members of the Knesset and government officials.<\/p>\n

Austin was photographed at the reception next to Yifat Alon Perel, deputy director of Israel\u2019s foreign trade administration. One person present described her as having led negotiations on an Israel-UK free trade agreement.<\/p>\n

The Foreign Office referred questions to the Department for Business and Trade, which declined to comment.<\/p>\n

Austin made no comment. Israel\u2019s foreign trade administration and Rafael did not respond to a request for comment.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Foreign Office recommended that David Lammy endorse a trade mission to Israel, days after he suspended trade…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":509027,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,4],"tags":[748,393,4884,1144,712,16,15,1764],"class_list":{"0":"post-509026","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-uk","8":"category-united-kingdom","9":"tag-britain","10":"tag-england","11":"tag-great-britain","12":"tag-northern-ireland","13":"tag-scotland","14":"tag-uk","15":"tag-united-kingdom","16":"tag-wales"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115394335913996512","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/509026","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=509026"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/509026\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/509027"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=509026"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=509026"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=509026"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}