The European Union’s top diplomat said Monday the bloc will assess member states’ readiness to take action regarding Israel, after Spain renewed calls to suspend a key cooperation agreement ahead of talks in Luxembourg.
Foreign ministers from the 27-nation bloc are expected to discuss the matter at a meeting in Luxembourg Tuesday after a call from Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez.
Attitudes toward Israel among key EU member states hardened over its genocidal conduct in the war in Gaza, stiffened further after the Israeli invasion of Lebanon and a new law on the death penalty for Palestinians in the occupied West Bank.
Facing alarm at the civilian toll exacted in the Gaza war, the EU last year already put on the table a raft of potential measures to punish Israel, including cutting trade ties or sanctioning government ministers.
But so far, none of the steps laid out by Brussels has garnered enough support from member states to be put into action.
Suspending the entirety of the EU’s cooperation agreement – as Spain is pushing for – requires unanimity among the bloc’s 27 countries and would almost certainly be blocked by allies of Israel.
More feasible could be suspending the part of the deal facilitating closer trade ties, a move that only requires support from a weighted majority of EU countries.
That would require a shift in position from EU heavyweights such as Germany or Italy. Rome has already signalled a tougher line on Israel by suspending a defense agreement.
“We already have the measures on the table; some of them that require a qualified (weighted) majority,” EU foreign policy Kaja Kallas said.
“First, I think it should be assessed whether it’s possible to move with those, if the member states have the wish to do so, to put pressure on Israel.”
The recent ouster of staunch Israel backer Viktor Orban in elections in Hungary has also added to the likelihood of movement on measures.
A separate proposal for sanctions on extremist Israeli settlers in the West Bank had been vetoed by Budapest for months.
Diplomats and EU officials say they hope to get the green light for those measures soon, but that it could take until Hungary’s new government comes to power in May.
European Left Alliance urges EU ministers to suspend Israel agreement
Meanwhile, the European Left Alliance on Monday called on EU foreign ministers to immediately suspend the EU-Israel Association Agreement, saying a citizens’ initiative demanding action on Palestine had collected more than 1 million signatures.
In a joint statement issued ahead of the Foreign Affairs Council meeting in Luxembourg on Tuesday, the alliance said the European Citizens’ Initiative Justice for Palestine had exceeded the required threshold in less than three months.
According to the group, the initiative also passed the national signature threshold in 11 EU member states, above the minimum of seven required under EU rules.
“This is the loudest democratic mandate the European Union has received on its foreign policy in years, and it leaves the Foreign Affairs Council with no excuse to delay any longer,” the alliance said in a statement.
The group accused Israel of continuing “to wage a genocide in Gaza,” intensifying “illegal annexation in the West Bank and East Jerusalem,” and carrying out strikes on Lebanon.
It argued that the actions constituted “systematic, documented violations of international humanitarian law, human rights, and of Article 2 of the EU-Israel Association Agreement.”
“The European Left Alliance demands that the Council immediately fully suspend the EU-Israel Association Agreement,” the statement said.
