France and Belgium were surprised by the participation of European Commissioner for the Mediterranean Dubravka Šuicová at the founding session of the Peace Council in Washington. According to Paris, it did not have a mandate to represent EU member states. Šuicová participated in the meeting as an observer. TASR informs about it according to a Reuters report.
In short:
- France and Belgium criticized Dubravka Šuicová’s participation in the Peace Council meeting
- Šuicová participated in the role of observer without the mandate of the member states
- The Peace Council was founded by Donald Trump, the goal is the restoration of Gaza
- Several member states are concerned about the legitimacy of this council
The role of the Peace Council
The Peace Council was founded on January 22 by US President Donald Trump. Originally, it was supposed to oversee the post-war reconstruction of the Gaza Strip, but the charter does not limit the organization’s activities only to the Palestinian territories. According to Trump, she could perform some UN functions in the future.
The first session in Washington was attended by representatives from around 50 countries. European states did not agree on the approach to the meeting; most of them chose not to send their top officials. The exception was Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. Slovak or Czech representatives, like Šuicová, participated in the role of observers. France, on the other hand, decided not to send a representative.
The reaction of France
“As for the European Commission and its participation, we are actually surprised because it does not have a mandate from the Council to participate,” French Foreign Ministry deputy spokesman Pascal Confavreux told reporters, referring to the EU Council, which brings together the Union’s member states.
According to him, France does not plan to participate in the Peace Council until its mandate is clarified. He pointed out that the council should have focused again on the Gaza Strip, as stated in the UN Security Council resolution from last November, which welcomed its establishment.
Concerns of member states
According to Reuters, several member states have expressed concerns about the participation of a member of the European Commission. Many of the European governments consider the Peace Council to be a body undermining international law. The Belgian diplomat referred to by the agency also pointed out whether the European Commission has a mandate to decide on sending its representative without the consent of the member countries.
“It is surprising that the Commission decided to be represented at this event, given that many countries have expressed concerns about its possible abuse and questioned the credibility of the initiative, which seems to be aimed at replacing the United Nations,” the quoted diplomat said.
Defense of Šuic’s participation
The European Commission defends Šuicová’s participation by saying that it was in line with the commitment to observe the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and as part of efforts to support its renewal and reconstruction. “Our goal is clear: coordinated action, responsible governance and tangible results for the Palestinian people,” wrote the Croatian European Commissioner before the meeting on the X social network.
