EU weighs ban on trade with Israeli settlements

European Union foreign ministers on Monday discussed the possibility of banning imports from Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories, following growing pressure from several member states seeking a stronger EU response to the worsening situation in the occupied West Bank.

Speaking ahead of the meeting in Brussels, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said there was broad agreement among member states that conditions in the West Bank had become “intolerable.”

“Everybody agrees that the situation in the West Bank is really intolerable,” Kallas said.

“What is happening in the West Bank is actually making it more and more impossible that the two-state solution ever can come into effect,” she added.

Several EU member states, including Ireland, the Netherlands and Spain, have already introduced national restrictions on trade with Israeli settlements, which are considered illegal under international law.

Responding to calls for bloc-wide action, the European Commission last week presented several options to limit trade with settlements, including a complete import ban.

“There have been a lot of asks and requests from the member states regarding the ban of the trade with illegal settlements,” Kallas said, adding that discussions would determine whether sufficient political support exists to move forward.

Diplomatic sources said Monday’s meeting was not expected to produce an immediate decision but would help gauge member states’ positions on possible future action.

The pace of discussions has frustrated several governments advocating stronger measures, with some diplomats accusing the European Commission of delaying action.

Belgian Foreign Minister Maxime Prevot said the proposals presented so far appeared to be “more a bone to gnaw on than a genuine desire to move forward.”

“We are calling for concrete proposals,” he said.

EU diplomats said member states remain divided over both the substance of the proposal and the legal procedure required to adopt it, with disagreement over whether unanimous approval from all 27 member states or only a qualified majority would be needed.

Germany and Italy, two of the bloc’s most influential members, have yet to take a clear position on the issue.

Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967. More than 500,000 Israeli settlers currently live in settlements across the territory, excluding East Jerusalem, alongside around three million Palestinians.

Last month, UN Secretary-General António Guterres condemned what he described as the “relentless” expansion of Israeli settlements, warning that it is fuelling the largest displacement of Palestinians in the West Bank since 1967.

The European Union has long struggled to adopt a unified policy on Israel and the Palestinian issue, with member states remaining divided between strong support for Israel and backing for greater protection of Palestinian rights.