Los foreign ministers of the European Union (EU) will discuss this Tuesday, at the request of SpainIreland and Sloveniathe possible suspension of association agreement with Israel, a treaty that lays the foundations for the country’s political and economic relations with the bloc, in response to the systematic violations of international law by the Government of Binyamin Netanyahu.
“The EU should consider the proposal to break the association agreement with Israel,” he said the Spanish Foreign Minister, José Manuel Albaresduring an interview on Spanish National Radio this Monday. Albares has insisted “no EU country, none, can accept violations of international law, a violation of human rights of this level.” Furthermore, last week, a citizen initiative that also demands the suspension of the agreement reached one million signatures throughout the EU.
He EU-Israel Association Agreement It is a treaty that establishes the legal foundations of the political and economic cooperation between the country and the block. Signed in November 1995 and in force since 2000translates into an action plan that identifies work areas and specific projects. The last one in January 2025 and is pending renewal.
He article 2 establishes that both the relationship between the parties and the provisions thereof “will be based on the respect for human rights and democratic principles, which guide its internal and international politics”. That respect constitutes “an essential element of this agreement.” Seventeen countries complained to the European Commission almost a year ago to assess whether Israel respected that provision.
The review by the Community Executive determined that Israel’s actions in Gaza violated that principle. “Based on assessments carried out by independent international institutions,” said the assessment concluded last June, “there are indications that Israel is in breach of its human rights obligations under Article 2 of the EU-Israel Association Agreement.”
Part of that agreement is a free trade agreement which regulates exchanges between the EU and Israel. The text imposes a restriction on imports of products that come from occupied palestinian territories by Israel since 1967. Those products cannot benefit from preferential conditions that introduces the agreement.
Since 2010, in addition, Israel and the EU agreed to facilitate access to both markets for agri-food products, and in 2013, they established rules for mutual recognition of pharmaceutical product certification systems. The trade flow between the EU and Israel has been increasing progressively in the last 10 years, and was hardly affected by the Army offensive of Benjamin Netanyahu in Gaza.
In 2024, the trade in goods between them he reached 42.6 billion eurosaccording to figures from the European Commission. In services, with figures from 2023, this exchange reached 25.6 billion. But also, Israel receives about 1.8 billion euros in European funds as part of the bloc’s neighborhood policy. In fact, Israel is also part of the Erasmus exchange programand research Horizonte 2020.
Because beyond the economic, the association agreement also speaks of “foster mutual understanding”“strengthen regional security” and contribute to identifying new areas of collaboration. The text lays the foundations for cooperation between Israel and the bloc in aspects such as the fight against climate change, migration or transportation, but also justice or security.
This text also includes a call to fight against racism “including Islamophobia” or “the protection of minorities.” Regarding the open conflict with Palestine, the agreement affects “Israel’s right to self-defense”, but also refers to “the importance of adherence to international law” or of. He also calls for “continuing to improve access” to humanitarian aid.
In June 2025, a report from the European Commission determined that There were “indications” that Israel was violating international law and human rights with its military operations in Gaza. Then, the 55,000 dead and 130,000 injured and it had weighed on Netanyahu, for months, an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court for war crimes and crimes against humanity.
A month later, Brussels proposed a partial suspension of Israel’s participation in the Horizon 2020 programme. A measure whose impact was very limited, practically symbolic, which however did not have the support of the majority of European governments, making it impossible to approve it.
The blockade of humanitarian aid by Israel that caused a very serious famine in the Strip and the Army operations in Gaza City made the Commission take another step in September. This time, proposed imposing sanctions against the Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben Gvirand the Minister of Finance, Bezalel Smotrich, for encouraging violence against Palestinians. A decision that requires unanimity that does not exist.
Brussels also raised suspend the tariff advantages enjoyed by Israeli products within the framework of the association agreement. This did not mean ending business relations between the two, but simply making them more expensive. According to the Commission itself, the measures affected only 37% of trade, worth about 5.8 billion euros.
Since then, a fragile ceasefire has been achieved in Gaza, although systematically violated. However, the humanitarian situation remains disastrous in the Strip; violence in the West Bank has increased significantly; Israel has approved the death penalty only for Palestinians who murder Israelis in the occupied territories; and The Israeli Army has invaded southern Lebanon.
“The EU has been very clear in its statement against the death penalty. It has also been very clear about settlement activity in the West Bank. And of course The repeated messages about the situation in Gaza remain valid”assured a high community source. The same source reiterated that all options “are on the table.”
“The high representative is willing to put the instruments we have on the table“he said. However, he also acknowledged that how much progress can be made on Tuesday It will depend largely on the position of the ministers. And although a good part of the community governments have been very critical of Israel, It is not clear that there is a majority.
The minimum that Spain, Ireland and Slovenia demand is suspend trade relations with Israel. Making this decision, whose economic and political weight would be very important, It only requires a qualified majority. That is, at least 15 of the 27, representing 65% of the bloc’s population, vote in favor.
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