UK's anti-boycott bill 'could benefit Russia', foreign ministry official told Downing Street

A senior UK foreign ministry official warned the prime minister’s office that a bill to ban public offices from boycotting Israel would benefit Russia, the BBC reported Tuesday.

The British broadcaster said it had seen a letter sent from a senior official in foreign minister James Cleverly’s office on 12 May that warned that Moscow could use the bill to say that the UK was being "hypocritical" in its treatment of annexed territories.

The UK has been vehemently condemning Russia for invading and annexing parts of Ukraine since Moscow launched a ground invasion of its western neighbour in February 2022. It has sanctioned Russia and figures linked to President Vladimir Putin, and pushed for Moscow’s international isolation.

British ministers approved an anti-boycott bill earlier this month to stop local councils and other bodies in charge of public funds from boycotting goods and services from Israel and Israeli settlements.

The bill follows years of promises by Conservative governments to quash the Palestinian-led Boycott Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement that calls for economic and cultural boycotts of Israel and Israeli settlements.

Foreign Office lawyers advised a clause in the bill "would significantly increase the risk of the UK being in breach of our commitments under [United Nations Security Council Resolution] 2334."

That resolution, passed in 2016, calls on countries "in their relevant dealings" to distinguish between Israel and the territories it occupies.

The Foreign Office lawyers warned that the anti-boycott bill could breach this commitment as it fails to distinguish between boycotts against Israel and those against settlements in Israeli-occupied territories.

The letter suggests a major split among UK ministries over the controversial bill, which was introduced by Communities Secretary Michael Gove.

The bill’s defenders say it complies with international law and the UK’s obligations under resolution 2334.

Gove last week said that he did not know of advice that said the government could be breaching its international commitments with the bill.

Approval of the bill comes as Israel accelerates its greenlighting and construction of settler housing in the occupied West Bank, and conducts raids in the territory that have killed scores of Palestinians so far this year.