(NEW: Information from the EU Commission about the Geldern affected.)
Strasbourg (dpa-AfX)-Because of Israel’s approach to the Gaza Strip, the EU Commission exposes its support for the country. Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in the European Parliament in Strasbourg said that all payments will be stopped. However, there should be no impact on working with Israeli civil society or the Holocaust Memorial Yad Vashem.
According to a commission spokesman, it was actually planned to make an average of six million euros a year available from an EU pot for international cooperation up to and including 2027. These funds should no longer flow with the restrictions mentioned by the head of the commission. It would also be frozen for 14 million euros for ongoing projects, it said. Israel criticized that the EU Commission’s decision is based on the propaganda of Islamist Hamas.
More sanctions in progress
From the Leyen also announced that the member countries submit proposals for sanctions against extremist ministers and against violent settlers. The Member States also wanted to be recommended to suspend trade agreements contained in a partnership agreement.
“I am aware that it will be difficult to find majorities for it,” said von der Leyen in her first speech on the situation of the EU in her second term. For some states, each of these measures goes too far and not far enough for others. “But we all have to do justice to our responsibility – Parliament, Council and Commission.”
The CDU European Member Hildegard Bentele was “shocked by the one-sidedness” of her party friend of Leyen. “No clear demand for Hamas except for a half-hearted” release of the hostages “, not a word for the progress in humanitarian aid, and the association agreement is sacrificed-without a plan for the future dialogue with Israel,” criticized the chairwoman of the EU Israel delegation in the European Parliament. This is devastating for the EU Israel relationships.
Israel: “This is not an acceptable behavior between partners”
Criticism also came from Israel. Israel’s Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said that the EU Commission President gives the pressure of forces who wanted to undermine relationships between Israel and Europe. This also contradicts the interests of the European countries itself. The EU Commission strengthens Hamas, which is responsible for the war in the Gaza Strip, said Saar. “And above all: this is not an acceptable behavior between partners.”
EU countries disagree with Israel
The EU is deeply divided when dealing with Israel. So far, the member countries have not been able to agree on proposed measures by the Brussels authority. At the end of July, the Commission had proposed to hire the cooperation as part of the Horizon Europe research promotion program. This is intended to increase the pressure on the country to enable better humanitarian care for people in the sealed -off Gaza Strip, where Israel fights Islamist Hamas. Israeli companies could lose access to grants in the millions by the punishment.
As a reason, it is said that Israel violates human rights and humanitarian international law with his approach in the Gaza Strip and the resulting humanitarian disaster. This violates an essential principle of cooperation between the EU and Israel in the context of the applicable association agreement.
Berlin does not want to agree to EU-Israel sanctions
Among other things, Germany speaks against it and does not want to agree to the sanctions. Other countries such as Spain expressed a clear lack of understanding of the rejection of the commission proposal. Whether the EU Commission’s sanction proposal can be implemented depends on whether he receives the support of a so-called qualified majority in the Council of Member States.
Specifically, 15 of the 27 EU countries would have to agree to represent at least 65 percent of the population of the participating Member States. In the end, only the support of Germany or Italy was missing. All other large EU countries and many smaller ones are for the punishment.
Support for Palestinians
From the Leyen also announced that they will launch a group of Palestine in October and also create an instrument for the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip. “These are international efforts in cooperation with partners from the region,” she said.
The war was triggered by the Hamas massacre
Israel fights Islamist Hamas in the now large -scale Gaza Strip, which keeps hosting hostages there. The Gaza War triggered the Hamas massacre and other extremists from the Gaza Strip on October 7, 2023 with 1,200 deaths and about 250. Israel defends his approach as a necessary reaction and requires an release of all hostages ./aha/dp/men