Trump Takes No Position on Allies’ Sanctions Against Israeli Settlements
President Trump declined to say on Wednesday whether the United States opposed new European and Canadian sanctions against Israeli settlements, the latest in a notably muted U.S. response about penalties against America’s most important ally in the Middle East. Speaking to reporters as he was about to depart Washington for Texas, Mr. Trump said that he was aware of the wide-ranging economic restrictions announced by Britain, Canada and France targeting Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank over settler violence against Palestinians. Asked whether the U.S. opposed them or remained neutral, Mr. Trump dodged the question. “I’ll be speaking to Israel,” he said. “I’ll be speaking to them, and I’ll find out what they, what’s their thinking. I understand exactly what’s going on. But I want to find out why all of a sudden does that happen.” Three officials with knowledge of the situation said that Mr. Trump, during a call with Prime Minister Andy Burnham of Britain, was briefed on the sanctions before they were announced, and that he did not push back on them. The people spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss a private call. Taken together, Mr. Trump’s response on Wednesday and his reaction during the call with Mr. Burnham speak to the president’s growing frustration with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel as the war in Iran grinds on. The White House did not respond to questions about where the United States stood on the sanctions, whether Mr. Trump’s response signaled tensions with Israel, or its position on settler violence. Instead, a White House official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive diplomatic relations, said Mr. Trump has a strong relationship with Mr. Netanyahu and commended the country’s military. We are having trouble retrieving the article content. Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings. Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times. Thank you for your patience while we verify access. Already a subscriber? Log in . Want all of The Times? Subscribe .