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Israel, the European Commission, Europe and the Netherlands
[Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs] Interview with Frits Bolkestein by Manfred Gerstenfeld - The Israeli "file" at the European Commission is a difficult one. In recent years Israel has undoubtedly lost the publicity battle, due to the intifada and to perceptions about the security fence. Another factor is that people bow to numbers. There are hundreds of millions of Arabs and seven million Israelis. There is the issue that Arabs have much oil and could again some day impose an embargo. The fact that there are so many European Muslims, with their electoral power, has an influence on foreign policy. Finally, there is anti-Semitism which in Europe often dresses up as anti-Israelism. Frits Bolkestein is a former leader of the Netherlands' Liberal Party.