When the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees was embroiled in scandal last month, Britain and Germany quickly froze funding, and other countries on the continent quickly followed suit. However, rather than join that group, Spain and Portugal decided to go in the opposite direction. They responded with promises of increased funding.
Over the years, and especially in recent months, these countries have been part of a group of countries across Europe that have consistently sought to strike a different tone regarding the Middle East conflict. Other countries include Ireland, which has called for a review of EU-Israel trade relations, and Slovenia, which has said it expects Israel to swiftly implement interim measures ordered by the International Court of Justice in a case investigating allegations of genocide. Also included.
These countries have contributed to the internal friction that has led to the EU being despised for its disjointed policies, but they also play an important, if limited, role in changing perceptions of the conflict. analysts say.
“This is an important countermeasure against the usual suspects, namely pro-American countries, which tend to be more pro-Israel,” said Brigitte Herremans, a postdoctoral researcher at the Center for Human Rights at Ghent University.
Martin Konecny, director of the Europe Middle East Project, said Ireland, Belgium and Spain were the most vocal. “But there are other member states that are right behind them and share the same position,” he said, citing Slovenia, Portugal, Malta and Luxembourg.
In recent weeks, spotlights have been on those countries as governments grapple with Israeli claims that at least 12 staff members of UNRWA, the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, were involved in the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel. The light is shining on it.
Dozens of states, including the United States and the Netherlands, have cut funding, warning that aid provision to Gaza’s two million civilians, more than half of them children, could completely collapse. .
In contrast, at least seven European countries, including Luxembourg, Norway and Slovenia, have pledged to continue funding UNRWA. Although these countries have been widely praised online for their pro-Palestinian stance, Konecny cautioned against characterizing them in this way.
“Not one of them waved a Palestinian flag or said that Palestinians should be treated better than Israelis in any way,” he said. “It can be said that these are countries that actually represent, or continue to represent, the traditional EU position on the conflict, namely support for the two-state solution and international law.”
Their stance has so far done little to change the approach of other European countries such as Austria and Germany, but Konecny said there is little doubt about their impact.
“This makes a difference in the sense that if these countries did not exist, the overall EU position would be more uncritically supportive of Israel,” he said.
He said such countries are likely to have ripples outside the EU as well. “For many people, especially those in the Global South, what they perceive as Europe’s uncritical support for Israeli aggression is frightening,” Konecny said. “And I think having a bloc of European countries that express clearly different positions is very important in maintaining the credibility of Europe.”
As these countries jostled for position, they sometimes clashed with Israeli officials. In November, after Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez condemned the “indiscriminate killing of innocent civilians” in a joint press conference with his Belgian counterpart Alexander de Croo, the pair accused them of ignoring Hamas’ actions. It was condemned by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The October 7 attacks killed 1,200 people, kidnapped hundreds more and played a role in inciting the conflict.
“Prime Minister Netanyahu strongly condemns the statements made by the prime ministers of Belgium and Spain that fail to hold Hamas fully accountable for the crimes against humanity committed by Hamas, which massacres its people and uses Palestinians as human shields,” Netanyahu’s office said in a statement. Stated. Said at that time.
Herremans cited the joint press conference held by Sanchez and Decroux at the Rafah border crossing, the joint letter, and talks with “like-minded” countries over the possibility of joint recognition of a post-conflict Palestinian state. This is in conjunction with Ireland’s recent announcement that there is. It was a glimpse of how these countries have found strength in unity. “Thus, these countries are also supporting each other, carving out greater space for pushing forward measures that other EU countries do not necessarily support.”
Armida van Rij, a senior fellow at Chatham House in London, said countries had different motivations. “Belgium, Ireland, Spain, they have historically always been more supportive of the Palestinian cause,” she said, citing those who draw parallels between the upheavals in Northern Ireland and Palestine and the legacy of British colonialism. and explained the problem. Irish stance.
Madrid hosted a conference in 1991 aimed at resuming negotiations on the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, and in 2014 Belgium became one of the first EU member states to discuss recognition of a Palestinian state. Ta.
Hugh Lovatt, a senior policy fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations, said societal support plays a role, but so does the political leanings of the governments in power.
He cited Sweden as an example, which is one of the countries that suspended funding to UNRWA following Israeli allegations. The country “was once part of such a like-minded group.” [states],” he said. “Then there was a change of government, a right-wing government, and Sweden’s position on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict changed a little bit.”
The number of Palestinians killed in the conflict has risen to more than 28,000 in recent weeks, according to Gaza authorities, with Britain and the US potentially ready to reconsider their approach to the underlying conflict. It suggests that. According to reports, the US administration is actively promoting the establishment of an independent Palestinian state after the end of the conflict, and the UK may join this movement.
These changes could pave the way for European countries to become more involved in the issue, Lovat said. “On this particular issue of recognition, and also in terms of reshaping the political horizon for Palestinian self-determination, the Americans, and to some extent the British, are moving towards the position of like-minded countries. It’s worth noting that there is a shift.” I think this is a window of opportunity for these member states. ”