The European Union should increase trade tariffs on goods coming from illegal Israeli settlements in occupied Palestinian territories, according to a fresh proposal to put pressure on Israel led by France and Sweden.
European governments are reopening a fractious debate in Brussels about whether to sanction Israel, with Spain, Ireland and Slovenia repeating calls for a free-trade agreement between the EU and Israel to be reviewed due to human rights breaches in Gaza and the West Bank.
Israel’s two-year bombardment of Gaza led to fierce divisions inside the EU about how the union should respond as the humanitarian crisis deepened.
Germany, Italy, Hungary, Czech Republic and several other states resisted efforts to penalise Israel, forming a blocking minority that headed off any EU sanctions.
A new Israeli law introducing the death penalty for Palestinians convicted of fatal attacks and plans to greatly expand illegal settlements on Palestinian land have given fresh momentum to EU states seeking to leverage the bloc’s trade relationship to restrain Israel.
France and Sweden are pushing for restrictions on trade coming from settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories. An internal paper setting out their position, seen by The Irish Times, said the EU “should take stronger action to limit commercial engagement with illegal settlements”.
The governments in Paris and Stockholm said Israel’s policy of expanding the settlements was undermining the future of a two-state solution.
The two countries warned that the controversial “E1 project” would cut off northern and southern parts of the West Bank under the control of the Palestinian Authority from each other, and isolate it from occupied Palestinian territory in East Jerusalem.
“We therefore call on the [European] Commission to urgently consider the legal and practical feasibility of introducing measures such as tariffs on settlement products and import restrictions through export licences,” the paper said.
The two countries said a total import ban on settlement goods could be justified, due to the “deteriorating situation”.
Goods and imports from occupied Palestinian territories are not covered by the terms of an EU-Israel free trade deal.
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Separately, Spain, Ireland and Slovenia have said there is an “urgent” need for the EU to credibly respond to Israel’s ongoing violations of international law and human rights.
An April 17th letter from the foreign ministers of the three staunchly pro-Palestinian states said the EU can “no longer remain silent or inactive”.
It is expected a meeting of all 27 foreign ministers in Luxembourg on Tuesday will again debate the EU’s “association agreement” with Israel, which includes the free trade deal.
Human rights organisations and campaigners have long called for the agreement to be suspended, in light of Israel’s human rights abuses in Gaza.
“In such a grave situation, we call on the European Union to uphold its moral and political responsibility, and to defend the very core values that have underpinned the European project since its foundation,” the letter said. It was sent to Kaja Kallas, the EU’s representative on foreign affairs who chairs the minister-level meetings.
Hungary’s far-right prime minister Viktor Orban was the sole holdout during a previous attempt to impose economic sanctions on several violent Israeli settlers, a joint EU decision that required the agreement of all national capitals.
His recent election loss in Hungary may open the door to EU agreement on sanctions targeting individual settlers when incoming conservative prime minister Péter Magyar takes office next month.
Suspending the EU-Israel trade deal would require the backing of a large majority of member states, rather than unanimous agreement. That would mean Italy or Germany would most likely need to lift their opposition to such a move to approve the trade sanction.
The Irish Government has separately committed to pass a national law, the Occupied Territories Bill, which would prohibit the sale of goods from Israeli settlements.
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