Borrell’s Statements After the EU Foreign Ministers Meeting
Following the informal meeting of European Union (EU) foreign ministers held in Brussels, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Josep Borrell made important assessments. Borrell stated that member states should examine the proposal to impose sanctions on two Israeli ministers. “We discussed this. However, there was absolutely no unanimity,” he said.
Borrell, who stressed that today’s meeting was informal and therefore only consultations were held, said: “I will take the necessary steps to move this process forward, using my representative capacity.” Borrell announced that he had submitted to the technical bodies of the EU Council a proposal to include Israel’s National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich on the human rights violations list. “The decision will be made by the ministers. As always, this is entirely at their discretion, but I will ensure that the process is started. Each case will be carefully examined according to the circumstances,” he added.
In a statement on August 13, EU Commission spokesperson Nabila Massrali stated that the two ministers Borrell was referring to were far-right figures who advocated stopping humanitarian aid to Gaza and deliberately starving civilians. In this context, the attitudes of National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich have been criticized. It is also worth recalling that Smotrich had previously announced plans for new illegal settlements in the West Bank that would separate Palestinian lands from each other.
