EU countries push for trade ban with Israeli settlements
The EU’s foreign policy chief said the options are not against Israel but against illegal settlements that undermine the two-state solution
Most European Union countries on Monday called for the bloc to put forward a proposal on banning the import of products from Israeli settlements, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said.
“The option that got the most support was banning the trade with the illegal settlements,” Kallas said after a meeting of the bloc’s foreign ministers.
“We tasked ambassadors to take this work forward and also ministers agreed that, if necessary, we can also reconvene an extraordinary meeting,” she added.
Under pressure for the EU as a whole to take measures, the bloc’s executive last week laid out options to curb trade with settlements, including a ban.
The slow pace of the discussion has angered countries keen to curb trade – with some diplomats accusing the European Commission of dragging its feet.