Canada’s Joint Statement on OPT, Meeting with US Secretary of State
August 22nd, 2025
Justice For All Canada acknowledges Canada’s joint statement condemning Israel’s settlement plan in the E1 area of the West Bank. The multi-government statement, released August 21st, 2025, correctly cites international law and warns that the plan will make a Palestinian state impossible by illegally cutting access to Jerusalem.
However, this same legal framework was abandoned when Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand spoke with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Washington on the same day. According to Global Affairs, Gaza was described entirely through US talking points: aid flows, hostages and a demand that “Hamas lay down its arms”. Glaringly absent was any reference to Israel being the largest recipient of US weapons, which it has used to kill more than 62,000 Palestinians over the past two years.
If the government chooses to condemn settlements as illegal, then it must act accordingly by taking action:
1. Impose a meaningful halt on military trade with Israel;
2. Sanction further Israeli officials advancing violent settlement policies that target Palestinian civilians.
Calling for Palestinian disarmament rings hollow while ignoring US-backed Israeli firepower, especially when UN experts have urged states to halt arms transfers to Israel due to the clear risk of grave violations. Canada must stop attempting to defend international law while repeating US talking points that excuse the Israeli-led apartheid and genocide.
Justice For All Canada acknowledges Canada’s joint statement condemning Israel’s settlement plan in the E1 area of the West Bank. The multi-government statement, released August 21st, 2025, correctly cites international law and warns that the plan will make a Palestinian state impossible by illegally cutting access to Jerusalem.
However, this same legal framework was abandoned when Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand spoke with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Washington on the same day. According to Global Affairs, Gaza was described entirely through US talking points: aid flows, hostages and a demand that “Hamas lay down its arms”. Glaringly absent was any reference to Israel being the largest recipient of US weapons, which it has used to kill more than 62,000 Palestinians over the past two years.
If the government chooses to condemn settlements as illegal, then it must act accordingly by taking action:
1. Impose a meaningful halt on military trade with Israel;
2. Sanction further Israeli officials advancing violent settlement policies that target Palestinian civilians.
Calling for Palestinian disarmament rings hollow while ignoring US-backed Israeli firepower, especially when UN experts have urged states to halt arms transfers to Israel due to the clear risk of grave violations. Canada must stop attempting to defend international law while repeating US talking points that excuse the Israeli-led apartheid and genocide.