As President Joe Biden visits Israel on Wednesday, Europeans for their part are struggling to send a message of coherence and unity on the conflict.
Tuesday, October 17 in the evening, after a good week of cacophony, the 27 found themselves urgently by videoconference for a three-hour reframing session. Objective: tune their violins…. restore some order to the line displayed by the European Union, concerning the current conflict between Israel and Hamas.
Only Viktor Orban was missing. But the Hungarian Prime Minister has chosen his side. He was in China to meet Vladimir Putin.
EU heads of state and government adopted a balanced position, defending ” Israel’s right to defend itself in accordance with humanitarian and international law” It front of ” terrorist attacks” of Hamas, while saying they are mobilized for ” support the most vulnerable populations in a humanitarian way” declared Charles Michel, President of the Council of the European Union after the summit.
A week of hiccups
Last Monday, the Hungarian commissioner announced that all European budgets intended for the Palestinians were immediately suspended. Huge outcry… A few days later Brussels corrected the situation and announced a tripling of humanitarian aid for the Gaza Strip. In terms of consistency it’s not great. On Friday, the President of the Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, went headlong to Jerusalem, without consulting anyone. In front of Benjamin Netanyahu, supports the right of the Jewish state to defend itself… but without saying that this response must be done within the framework of international law. Unease in the ranks… Spain, Ireland, Belgium, France, Germany, several countries do not like it: firstly, questions of foreign policy fall within their competence, not the Commission, but above all they find themselves associated with a pro-Israeli line which is singularly lacking in nuance.
A battle of egos
Behind these dissensions there is above all a quarrel between the two leaders of the European Union, Ursula von der Leyen and Charles Michel, who represents the heads of state and government.
It is a pair which – to put it politely – has never been able to get along, constantly disputes its prerogatives in matters of foreign policy and contributes to weakening the credibility of the 27 on the international scene. As much as this was not the case with the war in Ukraine, it is glaring in the conflict between Hamas and Israel.
We also had a new illustration of this Tuesday evening after the strike on the Gaza hospital. While Charles Michel expressed his emotion, Ursula Von der Leyen refused to make the slightest comment, too soon. However, on a subject as sensitive, as polarized, as explosive, the time is neither for personal quarrels, nor for a wait-and-see attitude, nor for contradictory messages, especially when they marginalize European diplomacy.