Brussels, Jun 1 (IANS): The European Union (EU) has asked Israel to stop its settlement activities as they are illegal according to international law.

The foreign policy chief of the European Union (EU) Catherine Ashton on Friday urged Israel to stop its settlements actives.

"Settlements are illegal under international law and threaten to make a two-state solution impossible," reported Xinhua citing Catherine Ashton, the foreign policy chief of EU, in a statement Friday.

The statement was made in the wake of recent reports about renewed plans for Israeli settlements in and around east Jerusalem.

Ashton said that the EU has consistently maintained that negotiations remain the best way forward for resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. It will not recognise any changes to the pre-1967 borders other than those agreed by the parties.

Unilateral actions by either parties will not be recognized by the international community, the EU foreign police chief added.