BREAKING NEWS

EU foreign ministers criticize settlement expansion plan

EU foreign ministers on Friday condemned an announcement by Israel that it will construct new housing units in West Bank settlements. Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini saif the new construction "has been criticized by" all 27 EU ministers, who are holding two-day talks in Stockholm which started Friday. British Foreign Secretary David Miliband reiterated EU calls for a complete settlement freeze to spur the restart of peace talks between Israelis and Palestinians. EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana said he is hopeful those negotiations can be relaunched in the margins of the UN General Assembly in New York later this month.