Israel's Foreign Ministry officerespondedtoday to a statement made by foreign ministers from the European Union who claimed that the peace process is stalled due to construction in Judea and Samaria, saying, "Jewish settlementhas never beena barrierto peace. There is no backlash forthe Palestinianrefusalto negotiateand their lack ofwillingnessto recognize Israelas a Jewish state. The Europeanposition rewards stubborness (and refusals to negotiate), as proven by Abbas'sspeech."