Scottish opposition slam government's secret meeting with Israeli ambassador, calls it 'beyond shameful'

By Necva Tastan Sevinc

ISTANBUL (AA) - The Scottish opposition party denounced the government on Monday after discovering a secret meeting between External Affairs Secretary Angus Robertson and Israeli Ambassador to London Daniela Grudsky, calling the encounter "beyond shameful."

The Scottish Greens were outraged after The Ferret, an independent non-profit media cooperative in Scotland, published details of the meeting in an exclusive report for The National based on a 10-month Freedom of Information (FOI) request.

According to the released documents, the Scottish government referred to Israel as a “critical friend,” despite publicly condemning the military actions in Gaza.

Scottish Greens co-leader Patrick Harvie said the meeting contradicted the Scottish government’s declared stance on the situation in Gaza.

“Israel is committing genocide in Gaza, yet the SNP still think it's acceptable to be ‘critical friends’ with a regime that’s blatantly committing war crimes against innocent civilians,” Harvie told The National.

“This is beyond shameful," he remarked.

He said the meeting stood in stark contrast with the Scottish National Party's (SNP) public opposition to Israel’s military actions and the ongoing humanitarian crisis.

“They rightly criticize the UK government’s disgraceful complicity, but when it comes to taking action in Scotland, time and again they have failed to deliver,” he said.

The meeting came to light after Grudsky posted a photo with Robertson on X, prompting internal tensions within the SNP and leading to FOI requests.

Among the documents released, an unnamed government official reportedly stated: “Transparency is obviously a good thing, but it takes up such a lot of our time,” raising further concerns about efforts to keep the meeting confidential.

“If the Scottish Government truly considers Israel’s vicious government as any kind of friend, then why did they spend 10 months trying to keep these minutes from the public?” Harvie asked.

He called on First Minister John Swinney and the Scottish government to clarify the reasons behind the meeting and its secrecy.

“We urgently need John Swinney and the Scottish Government to explain why their minister was cosying up to Netanyahu’s representative in a secret meeting,” he said.

The Scottish government has not yet issued a statement on the matter.