THE SNP government has refused to publish the minutes or agenda from Angus Robertson’s controversial meeting with the Israeli deputy ambassador.
On Friday, The Ferret reported that a freedom of information request seeking the minutes and agenda had been rebuffed, with the Government claiming that publication could risk damaging the “good and honest relations with states they choose to engage with”.
A spokesperson for the SNP administration further said it was a “requirement of international relations that confidentiality is not breached”.
However, Scottish Green co-leader Patrick Harvie has said there is “no legitimate reason for refusing to publish details” of the meeting.
Thank you @AngusRobertson for welcoming us to wonderful Scotland. Discussed the unique commonalities between 🇮🇱-🏴 and also emphasized the urgent need to bring back our 115 hostages. Looking forward to cooperating in the fields of technology, culture and renewable energy. pic.twitter.com/sh2KeqRa9j
— Daniela Grudsky (@DanielaGrudsky) August 12, 2024
External Affairs Secretary Robertson met with Israeli deputy ambassador Daniela Grudsky on August 8 however posts made on social media by Grudsky about the meeting on August 12 sparked criticism.
The backlash saw Robertson forced to issue a statement amid calls for him to step down from the Cabinet. Although he stopped short of apologising for attending the meeting, the SNP minister did say sorry for not having discussions “strictly limited to the need for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and an end to the appalling loss of life in the region”.
Speaking on Friday, Green MSP Harvie said that the Scottish Government was “hiding” the agenda of the meeting.
“It's astonishing that the Scottish Government thought that a meeting with a senior representative for a government that is inflicting genocide would be appropriate, and I can see no legitimate reason for refusing to publish details of it,” he said. “The refusal should be immediately challenged.
“There is nothing ‘good and honest’ about secret meetings like this. It is completely unacceptable to offer legitimacy to war criminals and to give them a smiling photo-op.
“The Cabinet Secretary for External Affairs has claimed that the meeting was used to discuss the assault on Gaza, but by hiding the agenda from public scrutiny, there is no way to tell what was said or where in the agenda it fell.
“The Scottish Greens have demanded an end to public grants and subsidies to companies arming Israel and those that are complicit in the illegal occupation of the West Bank, but the SNP has failed to take action.
“It is time for the Scottish Government to come clean, publish the agenda and allow scrutiny of this secretive meeting.”
A Scottish Government spokesperson told The Ferret: “The meeting request from the Israeli UK deputy ambassador was accepted on the basis it would provide an opportunity to convey the Scottish Government’s consistent and unwavering position on the need for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. This position was made clear by the Cabinet Secretary for External Affairs during the meeting.
“The Scottish Government remains committed to an immediate ceasefire, the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages, an end to UK arms sales to Israel and will continue to press the UK Government to recognise a sovereign Palestinian state, as part of a two-state solution to secure lasting peace in the region.
“It is a requirement of international relations that confidentiality is not breached. That is why the Freedom of Information legislation includes provisions to exempt material that would prejudice substantially relations between the UK and any other state. This is the case in relation to this minute.”
This story was updated to reflect that the meeting between Robertson and Grudsky was not first revealed by Grudsky's social media posts.
