World Jewish News

The 28 EU Foreign Ministers are meeting in Brussels on Monday.

Netanyahu asks five EU member states to oppose Foreign Affairs Council resolution on settlements

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has asked five European Union countries to oppose and tone down a resolution, scheduled to be adopted by the Foreign Affairs Council Monday in Brussels, that sharpens the differentiation made by the EU between Israel and the territories beyond the 1967 Green Line.

The five countries are Greece, Cyprus, Bulgaria, Hungary and the Czech Republic.

Israel is concerned the resolution, which is expected to be published in the EU Foreign Affairs Council Conclusions on Monday, will lead to more boycotts and other punitive actions against goods produced in Israeli settlements.

The Foreign Affairs Council is made up of the 28 EU Foreign Ministers and is chaired by EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini.

The draft resolution, which is reportedly promoted by Ireland, Sweden and France, states that “EU agreements with the State of Israel are only applicable to the State of Israel and not to the settlements,” adding that the EU and its member states “are united in their commitment to ensure full implementation of existing EU legislation and agreements applicable to settlement products. The EU reaffirms its decision and doesn’t consider it a boycott of Israel, which the EU opposes.”

But some coutries reportedly said they would like to see some changes in the text because they consider it too harsh towards Israel ''We will listen to them but it is obviously desirable that the council be able to approve the conclusions," French State Secretary for European Affairs Harlem Desir said.

Desir, representing French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius, said Greece and several other countries want changes to the text proposed last Friday.

In November, the EU issued new guidelines for labeling products manufactured in Israeli settlements and exported to the EU market. Since then, Hungary, Greece and the Czech Republic have expressed their opposition to the labeling decision.

The draft resolution also reiterates the EU’s support for a two-state solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and said it will “consider further action to protect the viability of the two-state solution, which is constantly eroded by new facts on the ground.”

EJP