EU take lead on Israel-Palestine negotiations, threatens Israel with sanctions

Europe, Middle East May 19, 2015 , by IRIA No Comments

Mogherini says Israeli-Palestinian status quo ‘not an option,’ Europe ready to play ‘major role’ in restarting negotiations

JERUSALEM, (Israel) — European Union Middle East envoy Federica Mogherini arrived in Israel on a two-day visit on Tuesday, to jump start direct talks between Israel and the Palestinian Authority.

The European Union (EU) wants a more active role in seeking peace between Israel and the Palestinian Authority (PA), the bloc’s foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said on Monday on the eve of her first visit to the region.

“My very early visit has a political meaning,” Mogherini told a news conference following an EU foreign ministers’ meeting in Brussels where she discussed the Middle East.

“The European Union is ready and willing to play a major role in a relaunching of this process on the basis of the two-state solution,” she added.

The EU’s head of foreign policy Federica Mogherini, is visiting the region this week, where she will meet Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Mahmoud Abbas, president of the Palestinian Authority.

Mogherini announced last week that she would visit the Middle East on Wednesday and Thursday for talks on the peace process with Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and PA chairman Mahmoud Abbas.

Criticized in Israel for past contacts with Palestinian leaders, Mogherini said on Monday she wanted to listen to both sides, especially following Netanyahu’s formation of a new coalition government.

Mogherini refused to be drawn on alternatives to the decades-old quest for a two-state solution, saying,

“One thing is clear to everyone in the region. That the status quo is not an option.”

The EU has often voiced its belief that Israel is mainly responsible for resuming the peace talks and should bear the consequences if the process does not go ahead. “The development of relations between the EU and both Israel and the Palestinians is linked to the extent of their commitment to the peace process,” insists Brussels.

EU threaten Israel with economic and diplomatic sanctions

The European Union is also threatening Israel with sanctions, including depriving Israelis living in illegal settlements of EU citizenship.

Currently, Israeli passport holders are free to travel throughout the EU without a visa.

A report in the Israeli press said the EU was considering a range of sanctions against Israel if it does not play an active role restarting peace talks with Palestine, which have been static since last April.

The European Union, which refers to itself as Israel’s biggest trading partner, has also endorsed the BDS (Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions) movement, calling on Israel to label products produced in Judea and Samaria, a decision that’s not conducive to promoting trade.

The EU is Israel’s biggest trading partner, with total trade in 2013 amounting to around €29bn.

On Monday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also expressed his desire to restart direct talks with the Palestinian Authority, appointing Vice Premier Silvan Shalom to replace former lead negotiator Tzipi Livni.