The European Union is failing to uphold international law after foreign ministers met in Brussels to discuss possible action against trade with Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories, Amnesty International has warned on Monday.
The meeting came amid growing pressure on the bloc to respond to Israel's expanding settlement enterprise, with several member states, including Ireland, Spain and the Netherlands, already taking steps to restrict trade linked to the settlements.
Speaking after the meeting, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said the proposal that received the strongest backing from member states was a ban on trade with Israel's illegal settlements, though she declined to say how many countries supported the measure.
"It’s beyond shameful that a majority of EU member states, led by Germany and Italy, continue to block the suspension of the EU-Israel Association Agreement," said Erika Guevara-Rosas, Amnesty International's Senior Director for Research, Advocacy, Policy and Campaigns.
"If the EU will not act together, member states must act individually and unilaterally suspend all forms of cooperation with Israel that may contribute to its grave violations of international law, including by imposing a comprehensive embargo on the export of arms and surveillance equipment and related technology, and a total ban on trade with and investment in Israel's illegal settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory," she added.
Ahead of the meeting, Belgium's Foreign Minister Maxime Prevot criticised the European Commission's proposals, accusing it of offering member states "a bone to gnaw on" rather than taking meaningful action.
Prévot said the options presented reflected "more a bone to gnaw on than a genuine desire to move forward", adding: "We are calling for concrete proposals", according to AFP .
He also described the measures as "largely insufficient compared to the need to be a credible actor on the geopolitical level in the Israeli-Palestinian situation - which, I regret to say, the European Union has not been for some time", according to Politico .
The European Commission presented three possible options, according to reports, which included a complete ban on trade with Israeli settlements, prohibitive tariffs on settlement goods, or a licensing scheme.
The discussions come two years after the International Court of Justice's July 2024 advisory opinion, which said states have an obligation "to abstain from entering into economic or trade dealings with Israel" concerning settlements and to "take steps to prevent trade or investment relations that assist in the maintenance of the illegal situation".
EU member states remain divided over whether any restrictions would require the unanimous backing of all 27 member states or could instead be approved by a qualified majority. Spain, Ireland and Belgium have called for a ban, while the Commission's legal assessment reportedly suggests unanimity would be required.
Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967. More than 500,000 Israeli settlers now live in settlements and outposts that are considered illegal under international law.
Successive Israeli governments have expanded settlement building across the occupied territory, further entrenching Israel's control over the West Bank and undermining the prospects of a two-state solution.
Israeli settlers have also carried out regular pogroms against Palestinian communities as part of efforts to expel and dispossess them of their land.