Jean Asselborn is Europe’s longest-serving foreign minister with 16 years in the job. He has been known as being a staunch campaigner for the Palestinians, including urging European countries to recognise a ‘’Palestinian state.’’ In news interviews, he went so far as to compare Israel’s plans to extend sovereignty to parts of the West Bank to Russia’s annexation of Crimea, which drew a sharp EU response.

Luxembourg’s Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn has issued a clarification after he appeared to break from the European Union’s official position by saying the United Arab Emirates was letting down Palestinians by agreeing to normalise its relations with Israel. 

“I am aware because I have many contacts in this region, that there is a fear of Iran, but I think you can’t just let your own brothers down in order to pursue economic interests and perhaps also gain more security for yourself,” he initially said in an interview.

‘’The Palestinians, the Palestinian people, who are Arabs, are really caught between the ropes,’’ he added. ‘’One can see for quite some time that solidarity with the Palestinians is no longer a priority, especially in the Gulf,’’ he said.

The Luxembourg’s foreign affairs ministry issued a statement on Twitter in which Asselborn sought to clarify his remarks.

“My aim was not to criticise normalisation of relations between UAE & Israel as such, but to highlight how crucial it is that Arab and in particular Gulf States stay engaged to support the two-state solution and help the Palestinian people establish sovereign and viable State,” the statement said.

Immediately after the announcement of the landmark UAE-Israel agreement last week,  the EU’s foreign affairs chief, Josep Borrell, as well as several EU Foreign Ministers, issued a statement welcoming the agreement.

“Israel and the United Arab Emirates are both important partners of the European Union. A normalisation of their bilateral relations will be beneficial to both countries and a fundamental step for the stabilisation of the region as a whole,” Borrell’s statement, issued in the name of the EU,  said.

The EU “remains firm in its commitment to a negotiated and viable two-state solution built upon the internationally agreed parameters and international law – and reaffirms its readiness to work towards the resumption of meaningful negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians,” the statement said.

Jean Asselborn is Europe’s longest-serving foreign minister with 16 years in the job. He has been known as being a staunch campaigner for the Palestinians, including urging European countries to recognise a ‘’Palestinian state.’’ In news interviews, he went so far as to compare Israel’s plans to extend sovereignty to parts of the West Bank to Russia’s annexation of Crimea, which drew a sharp EU response.

Luxembourg has close ties with the UAE through the focus of Luxembourg’s financial centre on Islamic finance, but also in the areas of start-ups, space and biotech.