The Director-General of the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations (DG NEAR), Gert Jan Koopman, said on Monday 30 September that the multiannual aid programme for Palestinian recovery and resilience (see EUROPE 13457/1), on which the European Commission is currently working, could enable the EU to play a greater political role in the region and with its partners.
“We are working on an ambitious programme for the next two years. This is very important. Thanks to this financial instrument, the EU, if it succeeds, will be able to play a greater role politically, because we will have a coordination framework for the international community to support the Palestinian Authority and help it with its reforms”, he explained during a hearing in the European Parliament’s Committee on Foreign Affairs.
In his view, this programme, which would provide an unprecedented level of support, based on an ambitious reform agenda, will open the door to a new Palestinian Authority that can play an important role, particularly in rebuilding Gaza.
The Director General warned that for the programme to work, Israel will need to ensure that the taxes it collects for the Palestinian Authority are fully transferred to them, that restrictions on the movement of workers are lifted, taking into account security concerns, and that banking institutions can operate normally.
When aid to the Palestinian Authority was announced on 19 July, the European Commission explained that it would present a legislative proposal for this programme at the beginning of September, a proposal that is still awaited.
Mr Koopman also announced that the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) was “on track” to receive a further tranche of aid. Last week, the High Representative of the Union Josep Borrell announced the forthcoming disbursement of €16 million (see EUROPE 13492/4).
Mr Koopman said that the Commission was checking whether the measures requested of the UN Agency were being implemented, following allegations of the involvement of certain employees in the attacks of 7 October (see EUROPE 13368/35). “On the face of it, this is a step in the right direction”, explained the Director-General, expressing his confidence that the next tranche could indeed be disbursed. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)