The European Union has reached an agreement to impose sanctions on violent Israeli settlers, marking the end of a prolonged impasse on this contentious issue. However, this move is considered just a “baby step” by some, including Member of the European Parliament, Kaja Kallas, who serves as the EU’s foreign policy chief. On Monday, Kallas emphasized that “violence and extremism carry consequences,” yet the 27 member states remain divided over implementing more stringent trade sanctions.
France’s foreign minister, Jean-Noël Barrot, announced that the EU is taking action against major Israeli organizations implicated in supporting the aggressive and violent colonization of the West Bank and their leaders. In a social media statement, Barrot stressed the urgency of halting these “most serious and intolerable acts” immediately. While the agreement in principle was reached, the complete list of sanctioned individuals and groups has not been disclosed. Notably, the list excludes two extremist Israeli ministers, Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich, who were already sanctioned by the UK last June for inciting violence against Palestinian communities.
The breakthrough was achieved after Hungary’s new pro-EU government lifted its previous veto on the sanctions, a stance maintained by former Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. According to Kallas, the EU will also target leading figures within Hamas with sanctions. Meanwhile, Israel’s foreign minister, Gideon Sa’ar, criticized the EU’s decision as arbitrary and politically motivated, arguing that it unfairly targets Israeli citizens and entities based solely on their political beliefs.
The sanctions, which focus on a small group of settlers, fall short of the more robust measures desired by some EU states. France and Sweden are among those advocating for tariffs on goods produced in illegal settlements. In a joint document, they argued that the EU needs to exert greater pressure on Israel to halt its settlement activities. Sweden’s foreign minister, Maria Malmer Stenergard, suggested that imposing tariffs on such products is the “most realistic proposal.”
While banning products would require unanimous approval from all 27 member states, tariffs can be enacted through a majority vote. Under the existing EU-Israel association agreement, products originating from occupied territories are excluded from preferential trade terms, although they are not outright banned.