Spain and Ireland ask the European Commission (EC) to investigate whether Israel, with its siege on the Gaza Strip, is violating the Association Agreement it has in force with the European Union, “which makes respect for human rights and democratic principles an essential element of the relationship”. In a letter addressed to the President of the EC, Ursula von der Leyen, the Spanish President, Pedro Sánchez, and the Irish Prime Minister, Leo Varadkar, ask the high European institution to evaluate whether the Israeli government is failing to fulfill its obligations agreed in the pact. And that, if there are violations, that the Council of Europe “take appropriate measures” against Israel, without specifying which ones.
The Association Agreement between Israel and the European Union, in force since 2000, is a bilateral agreement that details the legal framework governing “political dialogue and economic cooperation” between both parties. According to the document, the relationship between the signatories “is based on respect for human rights and democratic principles”, which “constitutes an essential element” of the pact.
“The EU’s commitment to human rights and dignity cannot have exceptions,” Sánchez warned in a message on social networks, where he disseminated the joint letter.
President Sánchez and Taoiseach Varadkar begin the letter by expressing deep concern about the “impact that the current conflict is having on innocent Palestinians, especially children and women.” “The expansion of the Israeli military operation in the Rafah area poses a serious and imminent threat that the international community must urgently address,” continue both leaders, referring to Israel’s announced plans to attack the southern Gaza governorate, where one and a half million Palestinians are housed, the vast majority displaced.
This is the first public call from two member countries of the European Union for Brussels to take action on its relationship with Israel due to the war it is waging in Gaza after suffering the Hamas attack on October 7. In the text, Spain and Ireland condemn the “terrorist attacks by Hamas” and demand “the immediate release of the hostages” it is holding in Gaza. But, while they recognize Israel’s right to defend itself, they remember that “this can only be exercised in accordance with international law, including International Humanitarian Law (IHL) and international human rights law. The response must comply with the principles of distinction, proportionality and precaution”, reads the text.
Spain and Ireland also remember that the measures imposed by the International Court of Justice in the case brought by South Africa against Israel under the Genocide Convention are “binding orders.” These demanded the Israeli government to provide basic services and humanitarian assistance to Gaza because they are urgently needed. Furthermore, both leaders “urgently demand an immediate humanitarian ceasefire”, a position that, as they recall, was supported by a “large majority at the United Nations General Assembly in December, including 17 EU member countries.
Both leaders also argue that the EU must maintain its support for the UN Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA, some of whose members have been accused of involvement in the October 7 attacks, and its “vital work in saving lives and in the face of the catastrophic humanitarian situation in Gaza.
According to the European Commission, the EU is Israel’s largest trading partner, with goods accounting for 28.8% of its trade in 2022. That same year, 31.9% of Israel’s imports came from the EU. and 25.6% of the country’s exports went to the community bloc. Israel, on the other hand, is the EU’s twenty-fifth trading partner, accounting for 0.8% of its total trade in goods. Among the products most exchanged by the signatory parties, machinery and transportation and chemical products stand out, according to their economic volume.
The letter from Madrid and Dublin comes at a time of growing international pressure on Israel and its plans to extend the land and air offensive towards the southern city of Rafah, which has left more than 28,000 dead and more than 67,000 injured in the strip, according to the health authorities of the strip, while intensifying the bombings in the overpopulated town.
The extremely serious situation that Gaza has been experiencing for more than four months led the head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, on Monday to raise the need for countries to stop sending weapons to Israel. In recent days, Washington has shown its rejection of the intentions of the Israeli government without having a safe evacuation plan for civilians while persisting in its desire to negotiate a truce with Hamas in Cairo, although Prime Minister Beniamín Netanyahu shows no signs of giving up and has promised a total victory against the Islamist group.
