Brussels still does not see unanimity to sanction Israel, after Italy and Spain request measures by flotilla

The European Commission this Friday avoided responding to the call from Italy and Spain for the EU to sanction Israel’s Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben Gvir, for the humiliating treatment he gave to members of the international flotilla for Gaza; But he wanted to make it clear that in any case it is a decision that depends on the Twenty-Seven and the necessary unanimity to take this type of measures against Israel is still not achieved.

“In terms of sanctions, I will simply remember the rules of the game and what the process is: EU sanctions are discussed and adopted by the 27 member states. Unanimously,” the EU Foreign Affairs spokesperson, Anouar el Anouni, expressed in a press conference, later emphasizing that “at this moment that is obviously impossible.”

Furthermore, he has warned that the discussions on these matters are “confidential” and are “fully in the hands of the Member States”, which is why he has asked to go “step by step” and wait to see how the discussions progress at 27. “Public requests are one thing and discussions between ministers are another, it is different,” he concluded.

The foreign ministers of the European Union will meet for the first time since the flotilla incident on May 27 and 28 at an informal meeting in Cyprus, the country that this semester holds the rotating presidency of the Council of the EU. It will be an opportunity for the ministers to “raise different issues”, but since it is an informal meeting, decisions will not be able to be made there, the spokesperson has warned.

On the 11th, the heads of European diplomacy, this time meeting officially in Brussels, agreed to sanction Israeli settlers for the violence carried out from their settlements in the West Bank, as well as senior officials of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas); but the legal development for its adoption is still pending, so the number or identity of the people who will make up the sanctioned list has not been revealed.

Then, the High Representative for Foreign Policy of the EU, Kaja Kallas, recalled that there are different proposals “that have been on the table for a long time” that have been promoted by different Member States to take more severe measures against Israel, including the total or partial suspension of the Association Agreement.

SPAIN AND ITALY ASK FOR SANCTIONS FOR THE MINISTER WHO HUMILIATED THE FLOTILLA

Already last Wednesday, the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, announced that the Government would ask the EU for sanctions against Ben Gvir for his “unacceptable” images “humiliating the members of the international flotilla.” The Israeli minister has already been banned from entering Spain since last September, but the Government will defend that this restriction be extended to all community land.

Also the Italian Foreign Minister, Antonio Tajani, announced this Thursday through his social networks that the Italian Government will request European sanctions against the minister for the “kidnapping” and “humiliation” of the activists.

The head of Italian diplomacy criticized “the unacceptable acts committed against the flotilla” and denounced that its members were “kidnapped in international waters” and subsequently subjected to “humiliation and humiliation” when they were in police custody, which “violates Human Rights.”