Peace Process Pulls at Germany-Israel Ties ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Nicholas Kulish - December 5, 2012 - 1:00am BERLIN — Growing up as a teenager in Germany, Jonathan Logan’s opinion of the Middle East conflict was black and white. “The Israelis were the good ones, and the Palestinians very clearly the bad ones,” he recalled Wednesday, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel arrived here for previously scheduled and suddenly rather tense consultations with Chancellor Angela Merkel. » Read more

Israel faces lowest point in Europe relations in decades ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Christian Science Monitor by Christa Case Bryant - December 4, 2012 - 1:00am Jerusalem-The unusually strong European rebuke of Israel’s plans to tighten its grip on land sought for a Palestinian state marks at least a 30-year low point in relations, say Israeli foreign policy scholars. While the nature of Europe’s complaint is not new, the tone reflects both heightened urgency about salvaging the two-state solution, and accumulated impatience with a government seen as diplomatically tone deaf. » Read more

Despite souring relations with Israel, Europe not about to boycott settlement goods, sources predict ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Times of Israel by Raphael Ahren, Joshua Davidovich - December 6, 2012 - 1:00am Sources in the European Union on Thursday played down a report in the Hebrew daily Maariv that Europe was seeking to pass a series of harsh sanctions against Israel following Jerusalem’s announcement last week of plans to expand settlement construction. That move by Israel came in response to the upgrading of the Palestinians’ status the previous day at the UN. » Read more

Israel faces lowest point in Europe relations in decades ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Christian Science Monitor by Christa Case Bryant - December 4, 2012 - 1:00am The unusually strong European rebuke of Israel’s plans to tighten its grip on land sought for a Palestinian state marks at least a 30-year low point in relations, say Israeli foreign policy scholars. While the nature of Europe’s complaint is not new, the tone reflects both heightened urgency about salvaging the two-state solution, and accumulated impatience with a government seen as diplomatically tone deaf. » Read more