Group of EU states advocates a more critical stance towards Israel in the Middle East conflict
A group of EU states is calling for a more critical stance towards Israel in the Middle East conflict at the summit in Brussels. "We will push for the summit to find stronger language on Gaza," said Ireland's Prime Minister Leo Varadkar on Thursday. A "clear message is needed that the unnecessary killing of civilians must stop", said his Belgian counterpart Alexander De Croo.
"The majority of voters under the age of 40 in the USA and the EU now have more sympathy for the Palestinians than for the Israelis", Varadkar continued. The political leadership could not ignore this. He would tell his colleagues at the summit that the EU had lost credibility with the countries of the "global South" on the Middle East issue "because we have double standards".
The countries considered close to the Palestinians also include Spain and Malta. In a joint letter, the four countries had previously called for a "serious debate" on the "humanitarian catastrophe" in the Gaza Strip. Countries close to Israel, such as Germany and Austria, are thus coming under pressure.
According to a draft of the summit declaration, the EU leaders want to condemn "all violence" against "all civilians" in the strongest possible terms at their meeting in Brussels. The EU should also organize humanitarian aid in cooperation with its partners in the region, but "ensure that such support is not misused by terrorist organizations".
However, the interest of other EU states in giving the issue a lot of discussion time at the summit was limited. When asked whether he would support the Group of Four initiative, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte replied with a curt "no".
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Source: www.ntv.de
