WASHINGTON — An Israeli diplomat will speak at J Street’s annual conference.

“This year, a representative of the embassy will participate in the annual J Street conference,”said  a statement from the organization issued Tuesday. “The deputy chief of mission, Ambassador Barukh Binah, will participate in the conference and deliver remarks.”

Officials at the Israeli embassy in Washington have in the past attended conferences of the liberal pro-Israel group only as observers, in part because of differences with the group, which has criticized Israel for not freezing settlement building and not doing more to restart peace talks.

This year’s conference takes place from March 24-27.