The European Union (EU) Special Representative for the Middle East Peace Process, Sven Koopmans, said today that the EU is considering imposing further sanctions on colonists and colonial groups, reaffirming the EU’S position that all colonies are illegal under international law, constitute an obstacle to peace and threaten the two-state solution.
The EU imposed sanctions on four colonists and two Israeli colonial groups involved in terrorist attacks against Palestinian citizens and their properties, Koopmans told WAFA during a meeting held with several journalists in Ramallah.
He noted that this was a “small first step” taken to stop the violence and the rising terrorism of the colonists.
He explained that he is discussing with the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, and the foreign ministers of the European Union countries more procedures to be done to confront and end the violence and terrorism of the colonists.
Koopmans also briefed the press conference about a team visit he has made to area C of the West Bank, which constitutes 60 percent of the occupied West Bank and falls under full Israeli military rule, where they met with a Palestinian family from the Bedouin communities which are surrounded by colonial outposts and learned about the escalating colonists’ terrorism they are exposed to.
The EU official slammed Israeli colonists’ ongoing violence as completely unacceptable, adding that there is consensus among the EU member states that broader measures will likely be taken in this regard.
In April, the Council of the European Union decided to impose sanctions on four colonists and two Israeli extremist groups for their involvement in attacks against Palestinian citizens in the West Bank, including occupied Jerusalem.
The United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Spain, France, and Belgium took similar steps.
The sanctions imposed on the colonists included freezing assets, prohibiting the provision of funds or economic resources to them or for their benefit directly or indirectly and travel bans.
Regarding Spain’s, Norway’s, Ireland’s and Slovenia’s recognition of the State of Palestine, Koopmans told WAFA that the matter of recognizing the State of Palestine is up to the member states of the European Union.
“Some member states recognized the State of Palestine many years ago, and some recognized it now with the goal of pushing the peace process forward. Other countries believe that this recognition must take place at the end of the peace process, or be delayed until there is an ongoing peace process,” he said.
The EU official said there is a greater emphasis now on the necessity of a peace process than ever before, adding that there is currently a greater focus on the reality of the Palestinian state on the ground.
He said that recognizing the State of Palestine is a separate matter that involves political and symbolic dimensions. In the end, all EU Member States, including those who recognized Palestinian statehood and those who haven’t, agree on the necessity of establishing a Palestinian state, he affirmed.
He said that even if Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he opposes the establishment of a Palestinian state and opposes the two-state solution, the EU and its member states are convinced of the necessity of establishing a Palestinian state. “Not in the future but as soon as possible, and my mission is to push the peace process forward and we have to work more than we have done before.”
The recognition of Palestinian statehood by Spain, Ireland, Norway and Slovenia, makes 146 countries out of the 193 member states of the United Nations who recognized the State of Palestine. All EU members; including Sweden, Cyprus, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia, Romania and Bulgaria have previously recognized the State of Palestine.
Regarding the ongoing Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip, Koopmans stressed that “the enormous suffering and great destruction inflicted on the Gaza Strip and the killing of large numbers of citizens, the majority of whom are women and children, is absolutely unacceptable.
He said the lack of access to humanitarian aid while the population starves is also unacceptable, reiterating the EU’s rejection of an Israeli military operation in Rafah.
Regarding Israel’s withholding of Palestinian tax revenues, Koopmans slammed it as a wrong step by Israel, affirming that tax revenues must be transferred to the Palestinian Authority so that it can fulfill its obligations towards employees and enhance the basic services it provides to the Palestinian people, such as health, education, among others.
He pointed out that the EU, in addition to direct support from its member states, is the largest donor to the Palestinian National Authority, highlighting the EU’s transfer of the second batch of financial aid worth 25 million Euros, in addition to 16 million Euros to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) to provide basic services such as health and education.
On Friday, the European Commission announced that it was preparing to pay the second batch of financial aid to the Palestinian Authority, under the EU’s PEGASE mechanism, explaining that it would help the Palestinian Authority fulfill part of its obligations towards civil servants in the West Bank, and social cash assistance to poor families in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
The batch will help the Palestinian Authority pay medical transfers to East Jerusalem hospitals, and support the administrative and technical capabilities of its institutions, in light of the great challenges facing the Palestinian economy, especially before the Al-dha Muslim feast.
During the meeting, Koopmans also touched upon the recent meetings that took place in the Belgian capital, Brussels, between Arab foreign ministers and their counterparts from EU countries, with the participation of the Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates, Mohammad Mustafa, to try to define a common path to stop the war on the Gaza Strip and achieve lasting peace.
Koopmans has been holding his position as the EU’s Special Representative for the Middle East Peace Process since May 1, 2021, and his mission is to provide an effective contribution to the final settlement of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict based on the two-state solution, in line with UN Security Council Resolution No. 2334 (2016).
He also supports the work of Josep Borrell on this issue and generally follows up on all EU regional activities linked to the Middle East peace process.
Source: WAFA
