Germany and Italy slow down Sánchez's proposal in the EU against Israel

BrusselsThe governments of the European Union are raising their tone against Benjamin Netanyahu for Israel's continued attacks on Palestine and Lebanon, but they avoid applying any sanctions to him. Member states have opted not to increase diplomatic pressure on Tel Aviv and, once again, the proposal promoted by Pedro Sánchez to suspend the European bloc's association agreement with the Israeli country has failed in the Council of EU Foreign Ministers this Tuesday. As usual, the main countries that have opposed it have been Germany, which leads the bloc of the most pro-Israeli European partners, and Italy, governed by the ultra-conservative Giorgia Meloni. "It has not had the necessary support," confirmed the head of European diplomacy, Kaja Kallas, at a press conference, who also assured that "it is probably not true" that applying the diplomatic pressure measures proposed by Moncloa would stop Israel from expanding the occupation of the West Bank.

Both Berlin and Rome had shown signs of growing discomfort in recent days with the Netanyahu executive's actions and, for example, Meloni announced last week the rupture of the security cooperation agreement between Italy and Israel. However, both executives have been categorical in opposing the approach promoted by Moncloa. "It is inappropriate," declared the German Foreign Minister, Johann Wadephul, although he admitted that "it is evident that we must dialogue with Israel on critical issues." "I do not believe that blocking a trade agreement is a useful instrument. [...] Our position is similar to that of Germany," added his Italian counterpart, Antonio Tajani, in statements to the media this Tuesday.

In this way, the majority of European partners have followed the steps of two of the major EU member states, such as Italy and Germany, and have ignored the call from Spain, which presented the proposal this Friday along with Ireland and Slovenia —only three of the twenty-seven member states—. In fact, the head of European diplomacy herself, Kaja Kallas, had already cooled the prospects of a total rupture of the association agreement with Israel being agreed upon, as it is a decision that must have the unanimous support of the European partners to be approved.

Despite the fact that, from the outset, everything pointed to the Moncloa proposal failing, the Spanish Foreign Minister, José Manuel Albares, has pressured his counterparts until the last moment. "The European Union is risking its credibility. [...] What more has to happen for the European Union to be moved?", the socialist leader asked them.

In this regard, Albares recalled that Spain, along with a small group of other member states, had previously proposed revising the association agreement, without success, because they considered that Tel Aviv was violating international and humanitarian law in Gaza. Now, however, the Spanish Foreign Minister has emphasized that the situation is even "worse" and, for this reason, Spain has called for increased diplomatic pressure on Netanyahu. "Israel has not stopped advancing and escalating the spiral of violence and war," insisted the Spanish Foreign Minister.

These statements, however, were not well received by the head of European diplomacy. Kallas responded to Albares at a press conference and reminded him that the EU is the major power that "sends the most humanitarian aid to Gaza and gives the most political support to the Palestinian Authority." "Our credibility is growing in all matters, especially if we see what is happening in the world. The EU is a reliable partner with credibility."

Spain leaves empty-handed

Given the evident lack of support for the Moncloa's proposal, Albares had also shown himself open to accepting the approval of minor restrictions against Israel that require a qualified majority, such as an increase in tariffs or a reduction in Israeli imports. "We request that the association agreement be suspended entirely, but there is a range of possibilities," recalled the Spanish Foreign Minister. In this way, the socialist leader was content with at least a "gesture" of diplomatic pressure on Netanyahu, but that has not materialized either, and Kallas pointed out that European partners "will continue discussions" on this issue in future Council of the EU meetings, although he avoided setting deadlines.

On the contrary, beyond Ireland and Slovenia, which are the countries that, along with Spain, have requested the suspension of the association agreement with Israel, one of the few member states that have openly shown themselves in favor of increasing pressure has been Belgium. "For months we have been calling for at least a partial suspension of the association agreement between Israel and the EU, as we are aware that full suspension is out of reach due to the states' positions," admitted the Belgian Foreign Minister, Maxime Prévot. On the other hand, France and the Netherlands have shown themselves to be ambiguous about their support for the proposal led by Sánchez.