EU foreign ministers discuss measures to curb trade with Israeli settlements

The move comes as EU foreign ministers remain deadlocked over a bloc-wide ban on illegal settlement trade.

Banning trade with illegal Israeli settlements has gained the most support from a range of options discussed by EU foreign ministers at a meeting in Brussels.

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...

The discussion will be based on a confidential paper by the European Commission that floats three different options - an import licensing system, prohibitive tariffs, or a ban.

The EU will consider three options to curb trade with Israeli settlements - import licensing, prohibitive tariffs or an outright ban.

Brussels: European Union foreign ministers will on Monday explore whether there is enough support ​for new measures to curb trade ​with Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, according to diplomats ​and officials.The discussion will be based on a confidential paper by the European Commission that floats three different options - an import licensing system, prohibitive tariffs or a ban, a senior EU diplomat and a European ‌official said.The EU ⁠has ⁠long struggled to take major decisions on Middle East policy because of deep and longstanding divisions among its 27 ​member countries, particularly on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.Also read: EU tells Meta to change Facebook, Instagram's 'addictive design'But pressure from member governments to take action on settlements has ​grown in recent months because of increasing violence by Israeli settlers and frustration with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government, which has expanded settlements.In May, the EU imposed sanctions on four entities ​and three individuals over what it described as serious and systematic ⁠human rights ‌abuses against Palestinians in the West Bank.In a July 2024 advisory opinion, ​the International Court ​of Justice said Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories and settlements in ⁠the West Bank are illegal and that states should take steps ​to prevent trade or investment relations that help maintain the ​situation.Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar last year described a push by some European governments to implement the advisory opinion as "shameful".U.N. bodies and most countries have found Israel's settlements in the West Bank to be illegal. Israel rejects this, viewing the territory as disputed and saying a Jewish presence has existed there for thousands of years."I think what you will see ‌on Monday is a discussion on the options, and we will get a bit of a picture of where everybody is," said the diplomat, ​speaking on condition ​of anonymity to discuss confidential ⁠internal deliberations.Diplomats said they did not expect a formal decision on any particular measure on Monday.Also read: Piyush Goyal set to visit Belgium, Spain and Finland this weekDivisions over the issue also extend to how any decision could be taken.Some diplomats say ​banning trade with the settlements would require a qualified majority - at least 15 EU states, representing 65% of the bloc's population. But the Commission's paper suggests it believes a ban could require unanimous support, a bar that would make a decision highly unlikely.European Commission spokesperson Paula Pinho has confirmed that a paper has been shared with member countries but declined to comment on its contents.