EU Trade Agreement with Israel Faces Hurdles as Germany Hesitates
Brussels – A proposed partial suspension of the European Union’s trade agreement with Israel, prompted by the escalating conflict in Gaza, is encountering resistance, particularly from Germany. While the Czech Republic and Hungary have voiced outright rejection, Germany’s position remains unclear, despite Foreign Minister Friedrich Merz enacting unpublished measures including an embargo on weapons exports to Israel. Chancellor Olaf Scholz, during a visit to Madrid, stated Germany will provide a response to the proposed sanctions next week.
Sources within the EU indicate that European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen consulted with Germany – and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni – prior to unveiling the proposal. However, Merz faces domestic criticism for the arms export suspension, possibly complicating the agreement’s passage. Notably,21 of the 31 MEPs from Merz and von der Leyen’s conservative CDU party voted against the proposal when it was presented in Strasbourg last week.
The path to approval is proving difficult. “Even though we see that public opinion in the Member States is really changing due to suffering in Gaza,at the political level,I think the political lines are very in the place where they have been so far,” acknowledged Kaja Kallas,the EU’s high Representative for Foreign Policy.
EU member state committees are currently reviewing the proposal, with diplomatic representatives scheduled to debate it in Brussels next week. The move comes amid increasing pressure due to the worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza, where over 66,000 deaths have been reported and the Israeli army is intensifying its offensive.
A high-level EU source argued that, “Europe has failed to find a common voice of condemnation about what Israel is doing in Gaza and the suspension of part of the commercial agreement, even though it is indeed a little economically powerful measure, it would send a clear message to the Netanyahu government.” No date has been set for a vote by the EU Council.
