Israel asked Canada not to cut aid to the Palestinians in retaliation
for their bid for upgraded status at the United Nations, newly revealed
documents show.
Postmedia News reported this week that briefing notes prepared for
Canada’s minister of international development show that Israel urged
Canada to continue its financial assistance to the Palestinian Authority
in the
face of the P.A.’s controversial bid for recognition at the United Nations last fall.
Canada was one of nine countries that voted against the move by the
U.N. General Assembly to grant the Palestinians recognition as a de
facto state.
Ahead of the vote, Canada’s staunchly pro-Israel Conservative
government had warned of “consequences” should the Palestinians push
ahead with the initiative, and there were rumblings that Canada might
stop its assistance to the P.A.
In 2008, Canada committed $300 million over five years for
development projects within the Palestinian territories, of which at
least $40 million was still waiting to be disbursed at the time of the
General Assembly vote, according to Postmedia News.
“There have been increasing references in the past months during
high-level bilateral meetings with the Israelis about the importance and
value they place on Canada’s assistance to the Palestinian Authority,
most notably in security/justice reform,” reads the briefing note, dated
Nov. 2, 2012, and signed by Canadian International Development Agency
President Margaret Biggs. “The Israelis have noted the importance of
Canada’s contribution to the relative stability achieved through
extensive security co-operation between Israel and the Palestinian
Authority.”
The document, obtained by Postmedia, is “heavily censored,” but said
“the emergence of popular protests on the Palestinian street against the
Palestinian Authority is worrying, and the Israelis have been imploring
the international donor community to continue to support the
Palestinian Authority.”
Even though Ottawa responded to the U.N. move by saying it would be
reviewing its current and future aid commitments, it said later that it
would fulfill its $300 million commitment, which expired at the end of
March.
Last month, the Canadian government announced $25 million in new aid to Palestinians.
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