EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas has expressed pessimism about the bloc’s ability to impose sanctions on Israel due to deep divisions among member states.2 This stalemate highlights the EU’s struggle to present a unified front on the ongoing conflict in Gaza, where a humanitarian crisis and famine have been declared.
The Diplomatic Standoff
The European Union is facing a significant internal rift over how to respond to the war in Gaza.While some member states are pushing for stronger measures against Israel, others, including key allies, are resisting such action. EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas has stated that she is “not very optimistic” about the bloc reaching a consensus on sanctions, highlighting that the lack of unity “sends a signal that we are divided.”
This division is particularly evident in the discussion around a proposal to suspend EU funding to Israeli start-ups. While countries like Denmark, Spain, Ireland, and the Netherlands support this move and even more far-reaching punishments like banning imports from illegal settlements, major countries like Germany and Italy have not yet backed the proposal. This has left the EU hamstrung, unable to take decisive action despite the dire humanitarian situation on the ground.
The Humanitarian and Political Context
The push for sanctions comes amid a catastrophic humanitarian crisis in Gaza, where the United Nations has declared a famine. The war, which began after the October 2023 Hamas attack, has resulted in a staggering number of casualties and displacements. According to the Gaza health ministry, which the UN considers reliable, at least 63,025 Palestinians, mostly civilians, have been killed, while an AFP tally based on Israeli figures states 1,219 people, mostly civilians, were killed in the initial Hamas attack.
The ongoing conflict and the humanitarian fallout have put immense pressure on European leaders to “change words into action,” as Denmark’s foreign minister, Lars Lokke Rasmussen, urged.12 However, the political and historical ties that bind certain EU members to Israel, coupled with the bloc’s complex decision-making process, make a unified response difficult. The disagreement over sanctions on Israel is similar to the divisions seen over the confiscation of frozen Russian assets, demonstrating a pattern of internal conflict that hampers the EU’s ability to act decisively on global issues.
The Way Forward: A Divided Path
With no immediate consensus in sight, the EU’s response to the Gaza crisis will likely continue to be fragmented. Some member states may take individual actions, such as Denmark’s call to suspend trade cooperation and sanction far-right Israeli ministers, but a collective, bloc-wide measure seems unlikely for now. The ongoing debate not only exposes the EU’s internal political struggles but also signals to the international community that the bloc’s influence in the Middle East may be limited.
The situation underscores the difficulty of balancing geopolitical interests, historical allegiances, and stated values on human rights and international law. The future of EU-Israel relations, and the bloc’s role in the peace process, remains uncertain as long as these internal divisions persist.
You can watch an overview of the EU’s foreign ministers meeting in Denmark and Kaja Kallas’s comments. EU’s Kaja Kallas & Danish FM Lars Lokke Rasmussen Address Key Foreign Policy Issues.
