On Thursday 14 November, the European Union denied the boycott charges brought against it after the Court of Justice of the European Union’s ruling on Tuesday 12 November on ‘the labelling of foodstuffs originating in the territories occupied by the State of Israel'.
The Court confirmed that these foodstuffs must be labelled as such, or even as coming from settlements (see EUROPE 12367/13). The United States expressed "deep concern" over this decision, which denotes "anti-Israeli bias," according to a statement by the U.S. State Department. "The sole purpose of these [labelling] requirements is to encourage, facilitate and promote boycott, divestment and sanctions against Israel", it denounced.
European Commission spokesperson Mina Andreeva assured that it was in no way a "discriminatory measure", nor a "targeted anti-Semitic or anti-Zionist" decision, but a measure resulting from the observance of international law.
"All products placed on the European market [...] must display information that is clear, correct and does not mislead the consumer. Therefore, when a product comes from an illegal settlement in an occupied territory, under international law, it cannot be considered as a product equivalent to a product originating from the rest of the territories", she said.
Allowing the consumer to make the distinction
Mina Andreeva recalled that Israel and the EU have a "special trading relationship" and that products originating from Israel's internationally recognised territory benefit from preferential tariff treatment. "The Court's ruling will not change anything in trade under the Association Agreement, so there is no question of boycotting Israeli products", a European source confirmed. The source assured that the EU does not plan to ban food from the occupied territories.
These foodstuffs are already subject to an identification system. They are not covered by the Association Agreement and therefore cannot benefit from preferential treatment. The EU emphasises that the purpose of the Court's judgment, which confirms an interpretative communication, is to help the consumer to make this difference.
"I would therefore speak of distinction, but not of discrimination (...). The use of the term 'discriminatory' implies that the EU's decision is to the detriment of one and to the benefit of the other", this European source explained. And more precisely: "Israel must accept that its political actions - the creation of settlements - have consequences".
However, the ruling may be complicated to implement. It is up to each Member State to control the labelling of products, according to consumer protection laws that differ from one country to another.
In addition, some foodstuffs from the settlements are processed in Israel and their origin is difficult to identify.
In 2018, of Israel's €13.6 billion worth of exports to the EU, products from the occupied territories accounted for around €100 million, according to the Commission. (Original version in French by Agathe Cherki, intern)