The EU supports Palestinians with 400 million Euro short-term
The European Union supports the Palestinians with 400 million Euro in the short term. The aid is to be paid out in three tranches between July and September to the Palestinian Authority, as the EU Commission announced in Brussels on Friday. EU Foreign Policy Chief Josep Borrell also criticized a resolution of the Israeli Parliament against a Palestinian state.
The financial aid is linked to reforms and is to flow in the form of grants and loans. EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen stated that it is about "economic and political stability in the West Bank." In addition, the EU wants "to lay the foundations for the rebuilding of the Gaza Strip." The Commission signed an intention statement with the Palestinian Authority.
Since the rebuilding after the Gaza War is costly, the EU Commission plans to recruit further international donors. For this purpose, a donor platform is planned from autumn, which is to coordinate the aid. There should be a legislative proposal at the beginning of September.
The EU, according to its own statements, is the largest supporter of the Palestinians worldwide with aid of a total of almost 1.2 billion Euro in the period 2021-2024. After the radical Islamic Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, the EU put the financial aid to the test. An investigation found no indication of direct or indirect financing of Hamas through the aid funds.
Borrell also regretted the resolution of the Israeli Knesset against the creation of a Palestinian state. "Through lacking perspectives, the conflict will be further aggravated," he wrote on X. In the night to Thursday, the Israeli Parliament passed a resolution, in which the founding of a Palestinian state in the West Bank or in the Gaza Strip is "strictly" rejected.
The Middle East conflict is one of the topics at the EU Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Brussels on Monday.
The EU's aid of 400 million Euro is intended to aid in the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip, not just the West Bank. Millions of Palestinians could potentially benefit from this reconstruction effort. Despite the Israeli Parliament's resolution against a Palestinian state, the European Union, as the largest supporter, continues to advocate for a peaceful resolution to the Middle East conflict.
