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The unusually strong European rebuke of Israel鈥檚 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鈥檚 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.

鈥淲hat we now witness is not an eruption of emotions or a political eruption, it is a result of years of an evolution that has been taking place 鈥� in which Israel loses gradually but steadily the sympathy of public opinion in Europe,鈥� says Avi Primor, former Israeli ambassador to both Germany and the European Union.

While he and others see a potential for a serious deterioration of relations, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu鈥檚 government appears undeterred by Europe鈥檚 response so far to plans to expand West Bank and East Jerusalem settlements. Despite Europe being Israel鈥檚 largest trading partner 鈥撀爋r perhaps because of it 鈥� Israel is largely unconcerned about the diplomatic flap inflicting any permanent damage.

鈥淲e have very strong relations with European countries and I鈥檓 sure we鈥檒l overcome this in the near future,鈥� says Danny Danon, deputy speaker of the Knesset and a member of Mr. Netanyahu鈥檚 Likud party. 鈥淚 think we will have to deal with that [Europe鈥檚] response, but we will continue to build in our capital in Jerusalem, and in settlement blocs in Judea and Samaria,鈥� he says, using the biblical names for the West Bank.

Is Europe鈥檚 criticism registering?

Mr. Danon, who is also a member of the Knesset鈥檚 Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, says he was surprised by the diplomatic backlash from Europe because it showed a double standard after last week鈥檚 successful Palestinian bid to be recognized as a state at the United Nations.

鈥淭he message is very clear: if the Palestinians will take unilateral steps, Israel will do the same,鈥� he says. 鈥淚 haven鈥檛 seen any similar [European] response to recent Palestinian steps.鈥�

But a fellow member of the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, Nachmann Shai, says Israel鈥檚 retaliatory settlement moves are detrimental to its global standing and reflect an about-face, after Netanyahu so carefully worked to get international opinion on Israel鈥檚 side during the eight-day Gaza campaign that ended Nov. 21.

鈥淲e lost this credit overnight because we didn鈥檛 know how to react to the Palestinian request at the UN,鈥� says Mr. Shai, who has represented Israel鈥檚 interests to the world in many different positions over the course of his career, including as spokesman for the Israel Defense Forces. 鈥淭he fact that we reacted by challenging the world community by doing something that we know for sure will make them angry 鈥� it鈥檚 like shooting ourselves in the leg, it鈥檚 against our interests.鈥�

The Foreign Ministry could not be reached for comment.聽

Hurt feelings

Some have characterized the dispute as the result of hurt feelings on both sides. European officials, who have shown more sympathy to Israel鈥檚 concerns than those of their own constituents 鈥撀爉ost recently sticking their necks out to support Israel鈥檚 recent military operation in Gaza 鈥� can鈥檛 help but feel that Israel has proven ungrateful.

鈥淎s much as we try to put a sophisticated analytical veneer on all this ... I don鈥檛 think you can completely dismiss the human reaction,鈥� says Mark Heller, a fellow at the Institute for National Security Studies in Tel Aviv. 鈥淚t may not have been intended as slap in the face, but it looks like a slap in the face.鈥�

On the Israeli side, meanwhile, years of harsh statements from Europe and the United Nations have left many calloused.

鈥淭here are undercurrents in the psyche, deeply held feelings that, ultimately, nobody likes us anyway, no matter what we do, and we鈥檙e really on our own,鈥� says Dr. Heller. 鈥淣obody else cares what we think, so why should we care what they think?鈥�

Lowest point in decades

Sharon Pardo, director of the Center for the Study of European Politics and Society at Ben Gurion University, calls the current flap 鈥渙ne of the lowest points in the history of more than 50 years of EU-Israeli relations.鈥� The only other incident he sees as comparable is the 1980 Venice Declaration, which recognized the Palestine Liberation Organization and affirmed the Palestinian right to self-government.

He says there were clear signals of growing European frustration leading up to this week鈥檚 rebuke.

When Britain, France, and Germany said after a UN Security Council meeting a year ago that they were 鈥渄ismayed鈥� by Israeli settlement building, Israel鈥檚 Foreign Ministry dismissed their 鈥渋nappropriate bickering鈥� with Israel and warned that they were 鈥渂ound to lose their credibility and make themselves irrelevant鈥� 鈥� suggesting that they direct their energies instead to bigger problems, like Syria.

Blacklists, ban under consideration

More recently, the EU has reportedly been mulling a plan to blacklist violent Israeli settlers from entering its member countries. And there has been a move to ban or at least label products made in Israeli settlements.

Prof. Pardo says the kind of 鈥渕egaphone diplomacy鈥� seen this week signals that Europe, which prefers dialogue over punitive measures like sanctions, feels it cannot get through to the Israeli administration and is trying to send a message not only to the government but also Israel鈥檚 voters ahead of Jan. 22 elections.

鈥淲e see a much more assertive EU 鈥� that is sending a message to the Israeli government that we are not willing to play the games by your rules,鈥� he says. 鈥淲e have a completely different set of rules. It鈥檚 either you follow us, or for the first time we will react in a different way than you鈥檙e used to.鈥�

The best, and perhaps only, way to get EU-Israel relations back on track and avoid further deterioration, such as the EU refusing to upgrade trade and technological agreements with Israel that would otherwise become quickly outdated, is to engage in meaningful negotiations with Palestinians, says Prof. Primor.

Whether those negotiations lead to real peace isn鈥檛 as important, he says, pointing to the effect of signing the 1993 Oslo Accords.

鈥淚mmediately we became the blue-eyed boy of the EU and we could get all the advantages that we wanted, all the modifications of the agreements that we wanted,鈥� he says. 鈥淭his could happen again.鈥�