Brussels, 19/01/2016 (Agence Europe) - In conclusions that have been hailed by the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) and criticised by Israel, the European foreign affairs ministers threatened the Israelis and Palestinians on Monday 18 January with taking measures to protect the viability of a two-state solution.
Underlining its firm opposition to any action harming the viability of the two-state solution, the EU Foreign Affairs Council called on the Israelis and Palestinians to show, through policies and action, “a genuine commitment to a two-state solution in order to rebuild trust and create a path back to meaningful negotiations”. “To this end, the EU will continue to closely monitor developments on the ground and their broader implications, and will consider further action in order to protect the viability of the two-state solution, which is constantly eroded by new facts on the ground”, the EU foreign ministers warned.
The Council stated that the settlements, which are illegal under international law, “constitute an obstacle to peace and threaten to make a two-state solution impossible”. The EU is strongly opposed “to Israel's settlement policy and actions taken in this context”, the EU ministers added, calling for “a fundamental change of policy by Israel with regard to the occupied Palestinian territory, particularly in Area C”.
The conclusions, which are the first to be adopted since the EU's publication of its guidelines for labelling products from the settlements (guidelines that certain member states do not wish to apply), state that “the EU and its member states are committed to ensure continued, full and effective implementation of existing EU legislation and bilateral arrangements applicable to settlements products”. The agreements concluded between Israel and the EU “must unequivocally and explicitly indicate their inapplicability to the territories occupied by Israel in 1967”, in line with international law, the Council adds. In the view of the EU foreign ministers “this does not constitute a boycott of Israel which the EU strongly opposes”.
Condemning the attacks and the violence on both sides, the Council calls again on all the political leaders to show restraint and a proportionate response, and to work together to restore calm. “The EU is convinced that only the reestablishment of a political horizon and the resumption of dialogue can stop the violence”, the text states.
Conclusions welcomed differently. The Israeli foreign minister criticised these conclusions. In his view, “the EU continues to apply a double standard in relation to Israel, ignoring the Palestinian Authority's responsibility for the diplomatic stalemate and the incitement feeding the current wave of Palestinian terrorism”. “The EU has chosen to discriminate against Israel. This approach prevents the EU from being an honest broker in the conflict”, he added. He said that the diplomatic and political efforts of Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, had enabled the language of the conclusions to be sweetened. Although these conclusions should have been adopted without debate at the EU Foreign Affairs Council, several member states (including Greece) asked for them to be discussed by the ministers and then re-worked. According to Israeli media, this was due to pressures from Israel.
The PLO, on the other hand, hailed these conclusions. “This decision is a message to the Israeli government meaning that no matter how much they invest in imposing and justifying an apartheid regime in Palestine, this will not be recognised by anyone”, the PLO's secretary general, Saeb Erekat, stated. “We are delighted at a greater involvement from Europe, including a call for a multilateral approach with the aim of putting an end to the Israeli occupation that began in 1967”, he added. Erekat nevertheless said he hoped the EU would take “immediate measures”, such as banning products from the settlements. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)