{"id":311163,"date":"2025-06-27T06:28:05","date_gmt":"2025-06-27T06:28:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/?p=311163"},"modified":"2025-06-29T07:51:24","modified_gmt":"2025-06-29T07:51:24","slug":"israel-not-an-ally-says-former-british-ambassador","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/?p=311163","title":{"rendered":"Israel \u2018not an ally\u2019, says former British ambassador"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: center;\">Sir Richard Dalton (left) in Tehran 2005<\/p>\n<h1 style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>Mark Curtis \u2013 Declassified UK June 26, 2025<\/strong><\/h1>\n<ul>\n<li>Keir Starmer\u2019s flouting of international law over Gaza and Iran does a \u201cdisservice\u201d to Britain<\/li>\n<li>\u201cIntense\u201d lobbying by Israel exerts undue influence over UK foreign policy<\/li>\n<li>\u201cMajority\u201d of Iranians may support their country acquiring nuclear arms after Israeli\/US attacks<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>\u201cIsrael is not an ally\u201d of Britain, former UK ambassador Sir Richard Dalton has told <em>Declassified<\/em> in a wide-ranging interview.<\/p>\n<p>He also warns that Britain\u2019s Israel lobby is getting \u201cstronger\u201d and exerts \u201ca very powerful force in our society\u201d including over politicians and political parties.<\/p>\n<p>In a discussion on the current conflicts in the Middle East, Dalton, who served as Britain\u2019s top official in Tehran from 2003-06, said that the United States and Israel together constituted \u201ca greater threat to the stability of the region than Iran\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>He added that prime minister Keir Starmer\u2019s backing of Israeli and American air strikes on Iran this month does \u201ca disservice to Britain, and a disservice to the cause of preserving international law as guidance for nations in their interactions with each other\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>Dalton told <em>Declassified<\/em> that the contention that Iran was on the verge of developing nuclear arms is \u201cfalse\u201d and that \u201cno such threat existed\u201d.<\/p>\n<p><em><strong>Watch our interview with Sir Richard Dalton<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<div align=\"center\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"YouTube video player\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/K1pq2co_Bhw?si=YVQy9Z6XWXQuxieK\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<p>Source <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=K1pq2co_Bhw\">https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=K1pq2co_Bhw<\/a><\/p>\n<p>The seasoned diplomat, who served as Britain\u2019s Consul-General in Jerusalem from 1993-7, observed, \u201cI think that Israel cannot be regarded as an ally because their objectives in resolving the central problems of the Near East are so different from ours\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe believe in the self-determination of the Palestinian people. The Israelis do not. We believe in a two state solution. The Israelis, not all of them, but the dominant ones, do not.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe believe that the state of Israel should be based on its 1948 borders. The Israelis do not. We believe that settlements across the Green Line are illegal and an obstacle to peace, the Israelis are bent on expanding them and, we believe that the Palestinians have a right to a peaceful existence on their own land\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>Dalton acknowledged that Israel does provide intelligence cooperation with Britain about extremist movements.<\/p>\n<p>But he felt the idea that Israel is an ally because it is \u201cthe only democracy in the Middle East\u201d is undermined since it \u201cconstantly oppresses its neighbouring people and subjects them to inhuman circumstances\u201d such as in Gaza.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s forfeited its right to be regarded as an ally just because it has an internal democracy\u201d, Dalton said.<\/p>\n<p>Condemning the \u201cappalling and grossly illegal\u201d Hamas attacks of 7 October 2023, the former ambassador added that \u201cthe balance indicates that this [Israel] is not a country with a similar set of values to us\u201d.<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>\u2018Pro-Israel lobby in British foreign policy making\u2019<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Dalton, who held a range of positions in the Foreign Office until leaving in 2006, believes the UK has not taken a clear position on international legal issues over Gaza due to \u201cthe desire not to open up a wide gulf with the United States as a matter of principle\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI find it shocking\u201d, he says. \u201cThere are European countries that have taken a much more robust and intelligent and humane and legal stance.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Dalton added: \u201cThe reason we have never developed an independent policy on the turmoils and travails of the Middle East is because we are always looking over our shoulders at what the Americans want, what the Americans are saying\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>The second reason explaining UK support for Israel over Gaza is the Israel lobby, the former ambassador reasoned.<\/p>\n<p>The \u201cbalance of opinion in parliament\u201d is such that \u201cthose willing to uphold the Palestinian right to self-determination and to be free from gross human rights abuses are relatively weak\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>There\u2019s also \u201cthe effect of intense Israeli lobbying and the linkage of Israeli lobbying to financial interests. It is a very powerful force in our society. Those who support the Israeli government through thick and thin, have traditionally been very influential\u201d, Dalton added.<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>\u2018Powerful allies\u2019<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>The Israel lobby has \u201cpowerful political allies in some political parties, and in some sections of the media. So a desire for a quiet life and a good career, means that many politicians swallow potential dislike of aspects of Israeli policy in order to toe the Israeli line\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>Asked if he sees evidence of the strength of the pro-Israel lobby in Britain\u2019s Foreign Office and Ministry of Defence, Dalton replied: \u201cOh, yes. There\u2019s no doubt that the Israeli public have a right to be proud of their diplomatic service and the ability of the State of Israel to leverage sources of influence within British society\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI remember at the time of one of Israel\u2019s invasions of Lebanon, David Cameron mentioning an encounter he\u2019d had on the steps of a railway carriage with a prominent supporter of the State of Israel, who was also a very prominent, powerful British businessman.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd, he had had to say, I think this is 2010, as far as I remember, that no, there were limits to what we were prepared to support. We didn\u2019t consider it right that Israel had the right to smash up civil facilities in Lebanon. But since those days, Israeli influence and the influence of supporters of the government of Israel has got stronger.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Asked if Israeli influence raises questions about democratic decision-making in Britain, Dalton replied: \u201cYes it does. And opinion polls in Britain show that the stances the British government has taken are not in accordance with majority opinion in Britain who increasingly see through Israeli claims to be conducting a moral war\u201d.<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>\u2018Ridiculous Western mantra\u2019<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Shortly after Dalton\u2019s tenure as ambassador in Tehran, Britain\u2019s GCHQ intelligence agency <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lemonde.fr\/en\/archives\/article\/2022\/03\/14\/britain-has-spent-years-spying-on-israel-s-leaders_5978487_113.html\">said<\/a> in a top secret document: \u201cThe Israelis remain a real threat to the stability of the region, in particular because of the position of this country with respect to [Iran]\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>Commenting on that assessment, Dalton told <em>Declassified<\/em>: \u201cI\u2019ve always believed that the United States and Israel together constituted a greater threat to the stability of the region than Iran\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIran\u2019s activities against Israel were wrong and destabilising\u201d, Dalton added, but there is \u201ca ridiculous Western mantra that Iran is the source of all evil, when all the states of the region, from Saudi Arabia to Turkey and from the United States to Israel to Iran, have been involving themselves in the conflicts in the region\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>Iran\u2019s rhetoric about threats to Israel is \u201creal and represents beliefs at the heart of the supreme leader that Israel shouldn\u2019t be there\u201d, Dalton says. \u201cBut Iran has never had the capability of putting those threats into action. And it was not developing the capability to attack Israel with nuclear weapons\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>Asked by <em>Declassified <\/em>why the UK has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.declassifieduk.org\/revealed-britain-secretly-believes-israel-has-nuclear-weapons-but-wont-admit-it\/\">refused<\/a> to openly recognise Israel\u2019s possession of nuclear weapons, Dalton speculated: \u201cI suspect it\u2019s a commitment they have given to the Israeli government and the United States\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf it is such a thing, I\u2019m not aware of its details but maybe they feel bound by such a commitment. Personally, I can\u2019t see it serving any useful purpose. I think openness and a proper discussion is what is needed.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Dalton also laments that UK ministers have \u201cignored the proper application of international law, both with respect to Gaza and to Iran\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>Keir Starmer\u2019s government has been \u201cfacing two ways\u201d, he says, discouraging the use of UK facilities in helping the US to attack Iran \u201cbut at the same time wishing to show full support for Israel and the United States\u201d.<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>Scuppering talks<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>As for an imminent nuclear threat from Iran to justify the recent Israeli and American attacks on the country, Dalton said such threats have been claimed by Israel for over two decades and that \u201cno such threat existed\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou can be sure that if such a threat was able to be documented, we would have heard about it\u201d, he added.<\/p>\n<p>The attacks scuppered international talks to restrict Iran\u2019s nuclear programme while \u201cIran remained open to further negotiations\u201d, Dalton remarked. The seventh round of such talks was due to be held but was aborted by Israel\u2019s attacks on 13 June.<\/p>\n<p>Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu \u201cacted to avoid any such discussion\u201d, Dalton suggested. \u201cIn so doing and in aborting a potentially fruitful diplomatic outcome, which President Trump had said was possible, shortly before the attack, he did the world a grave disservice\u201d.<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>More dangerous world<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Dalton, who served in Tehran in the aftermath of the US\/UK invasion of Iraq in 2003, said that Trump \u201chas potentially made the Middle East more prone to nuclear proliferation than before he conducted the attack\u201d on Iran.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBy every standard, this was not a legal preemptive attack and its consequences, though shortened now by the ceasefire, if it holds, could turn out to be a more unstable and potentially nuclear armed Middle East than before the attacks\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere will be, I believe, majority support amongst Iranian people\u201d for Iran acquiring nuclear weapons in the future to prevent further attacks.<\/p>\n<p>The strikes have also made nuclear inspections harder, Dalton said, with Iran\u2019s parliament voting this week to suspend cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI suspect that the nuclear materials that had been in the sites that have been bombed, which will not have required many trucks to remove them, have been removed and that it is now much harder for the International Atomic Energy Agency to carry out the job, which we all want it to do, to continue tracing nuclear materials to account for them\u201d.<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>Threats to the UK?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>The UK government has taken <a href=\"https:\/\/www.gov.uk\/government\/speeches\/protecting-national-security\">steps<\/a> in recent months to crack down on what it says are increasing \u201cstate threats from Iran\u201d against dissidents and journalists in Britain.<\/p>\n<p>MI5 says that since the start of 2022 the UK has responded to 20 Iran-backed plots \u201cpresenting potentially lethal threats to British citizens and UK residents\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>Dalton says these threats are \u201cwrong and repulsive. The activities of a section of the Iranian external security service are repugnant and must be stopped. But it\u2019s easy to exaggerate the impact. No one\u2019s been killed, thank goodness. I think the Iranian policy is to throw scares into people\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>He added: \u201cBut it\u2019s not a threat to our democracy or a threat to the stability of our society because it\u2019s targeted at particular enemies of the Iranian state, as the Iranians see it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Dalton, who served in the British embassy in Oman as head of chancery in the early 1980s, also responded to our questioning about Britain\u2019s secret <a href=\"https:\/\/www.declassifieduk.org\/british-spy-agency-refuses-to-acknowledge-its-bases-in-gulf-dictatorship\/\">GCHQ<\/a> spy base in Oman.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt was put there originally because of the existential threat to Britain and Western Europe and the Atlantic Alliance from Russia. I have no way of knowing what, if any, role the station in Oman now has\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEvery potential technique of electronic surveillance will be being used against Iran\u201d, Dalton added.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.declassifieduk.org\/israel-not-an-ally-says-former-british-ambassador\/\">Source\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u201cI\u2019ve always believed that the United States and Israel constituted a greater threat to the stability of the region (the Middle East) than Iran.\u201d  &#8212; Sir Richard Dalton former UK Ambassador to Iran and former UK Consul General in Jerusalem <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":39262,"featured_media":311165,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[61,37],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-311163","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-Commentary","category-Israel_Anti-Semitism_Zionism_and_US-UK_allies"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/311163","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/39262"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=311163"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/311163\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":311164,"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/311163\/revisions\/311164"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/311165"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=311163"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=311163"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=311163"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}