PALESTINE-ISRAEL CONFLICT,

Assessing the Role of European Union

Palestine-Israel conflict has been rightly labelled as the mother of all issues in the
Middle East. It is one of the most protracted and potentially dangerous conflicts in the
world. After more than seven decades, the resolution of the conflict is still a distant
dream. It caused wars, shed blood, created disorder and fomented instability in the
region. Indeed, impact of the conflict is not confined to the region only; almost the
whole world is bearing the brunt of it. This issue became the root cause of radicalization
and anti-West sentiments among Muslims. Global community has been incessantly
striving to bring an end to the conflict but all their efforts have proved futile.

Whenever there is a talk about the resolution of Israel-Palestine conflict, states, academia and
activists look toward the United States and United Nations. Both are considered relevant and
authoritative actors having capacity to bring the conflict to an amicable settlement. However,
the role of the European Union in this regard is rarely discussed. The EU enjoys soft power
that is adequate enough to affect decision-making in international arena. It has different
vision of the world and distinct way to deal with the thorniest of issues. Diplomacy and
peaceful means are at the heart of EU foreign policy. Amid this backdrop, this article
attempts to figure out the role EU can play in resolving the Palestine conflict. Before, going
into details of that aspect, let’s have a brief overview of the conflict.

By the end of nineteenth century, Jewish intellectuals were involved in making organized
efforts to attain a separate homeland for their dispersed and dislocated community. In his
pamphlet entitled “Auto-Emancipation,” Leon Pinsker argued, “The Jews are not a living
nation; they are everywhere aliens; therefore they are despised. The civil and political
emancipation of the Jews is not sufficient to raise them in the estimation of the peoples. The
proper, the only solution, is in the creation of a Jewish nationality, of a people living upon its
own soil, the auto-emancipation of the Jews; their return to the ranks of the nations by the
acquisition of a Jewish homeland.” Owing to consistent pressure by the influential Jewish
community, Great Britain, in 1917, promised through Balfour Declaration that Jews would
get a separate homeland.

This was the time when Jews from Russia and other parts of the world started to migrate to,
and settle in, Palestine. Meanwhile, emergence of Nazi rule in Germany and subsequent
systematic campaign to massacre Jews expedited the migration. The settling of millions of
Jews in Palestine triggered a strong reaction from the Arab world. Arab countries expressed
deep concerns on what they called ‘invasion’. With the passage of time, Jews declared
establishment of Israel as an independent state and it got recognized by the United Nations as
well. Colonial and Allied Powers paid no heed to Arab concerns. In reaction, Arabs attacked
the newborn Israel to regain the occupied territory, but owing to world powers’ support for
Israel, they lost the war — and more territory too. Since then, there have been three major
wars. When Arabs repeatedly faced humiliating defeats, they gave up the option of full-
fledged military confrontation and Egypt and Jordan made peace with Israel. Then
Palestinians started to fight on their own and became symbol of resistance against illegitimate
Israeli occupation. Their resistance kept the issue alive at international arena and it is because
of their own efforts that the major part of the world still expresses sympathy with the
persecuted Palestinians. While the prospects for resolution of the conflict are very less, the
world has not yet ceased its efforts to provide Palestinians what they deserve under inherent,
inalienable and natural right to self-determination.

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Why EU should play a constructive and active role?

There are various reasons which necessitate an active and constructive role of the European
Union in resolving this decades-long conflict. At the very first place, European countries are
responsible for the genesis of the Palestine-Israel conflict. After the end of World War I,
colonial powers — England and France through Sykes-Picot Agreement — redrew the map
of Middle East and created various states to promote, preserve and protect their own
commercial and geopolitical interests. According to Dries Van Agt, former Prime Minister of
the Netherlands, “The European colonial powers, Britain and France, carved out the Ottoman
Empire, with hardly any feelings for the problems and the circumstances of the people who
lived in those regions. They just took a map and parcelled out the Middle East among
themselves. The end result was that all the states that emerged in later decades have achieved
independence, except for the Province of Palestine. Without these European interventions
there after World War I, history would have certainly taken another course.”

This proves that European colonial powers are directly responsible for all the woes of the
Middle East. They didn’t even bother to consider the grievances of Arabs just for the sake of
commercial interests. Adding fuel to the fire, they facilitated the migration of Jews to the land
of Palestine and establishment of Israel thereupon. Such ill-considered policies of colonial
powers caused fighting and mayhem in the region. Therefore, right now, Europe is morally
responsible to help Palestine get what it lost in 1948.

Another important reason in this regard is that the conflict is a question of fundamental
human rights. Israel has been involved in committing the gravest human rights abuses. It has
been violating international law and ignoring the humanitarian calls by global community.
Israel has set the precedent for unprecedented human rights violations by refusing to grant
even equal status to the Palestinians. Israeli defence forces crush Palestinians’ peaceful
resistance with iron fist but still they remain unaccountable. Thousands of children, women
and elderly people have been mercilessly killed. Such a horrendous state of affairs demands
EU to protect the ideals it vociferously champions. EU must act on the basis of human rights
and international law.

EU’s position

EU’s position on the conflict has undergone evolution. Venice Declaration of 1980s was a
starting point when EU (then European Community) emerged very clearly and unequivocally
with regard to the issue. Prior to this, Europe extended unconditional support to Israel but
events in 1970s compelled it to reconsider the policy. At the very first place, EU wanted to
resolve this issue on the basis of the so-called two-state solution. On the question of the
border, the EU wants Israel to withdraw from all territories it occupied after 1967 and
negotiate a settlement according to UNSC Resolutions 242, 338, 1397 and 1515. EU wants
Palestinian state as viable, cohesive and geographically connected so that it can pursue
independent policy without being dependent on any country.

On the issue of settlement, EU is very clear in its stance that all these settlements are illegal
and against the spirit of international law. Israeli settlements in West Bank make a hurdle to
the peace process and complicate the situation further. Besides, on the question of capital, EU
favours East Jerusalem to be the capital of Palestine. Without it, the problem would not be
solved as strong religious sentiments are attached to it.

In essence, current position of EU is in favour of Palestine and it has openly endorsed the
“Arab Peace Initiative” which aims to resolve the conflict on the basis of two-state solution.
Finally, support for Israeli policies has largely declined in Europe. People are increasingly
demanding from their respective governments to take necessary steps to help Palestinians.

EU & the resolution of the conflict

As mentioned earlier, policies of European countries were favouring Israel until 1973. But
Yom Kippur War and the ensuing oil crisis altered the whole scenario. A number of
European countries realised that their support to Israel was detrimental to their interests
because of their proximity with the Middle East and their dependence upon its oil. Therefore,
they changed the course of their policy and committed to resolve the issue. At the end of
1970s, unexpectedly, European community accepted Palestinians’ right to their own land.
This was a major policy shift followed by the announcement of Venice Declaration. The
Declaration was a watershed in Europe’s foreign policy toward Middle East. Through the
Declaration, European Community endorsed the right to security and existence of all states in
the region. EC emphasised the need to fulfil the legitimate rights of Palestinian people. This
was possible because of the active diplomacy of France which compelled the community to
reconsider the past policies. This Declaration made significant contribution to garnering
support for Palestinian cause.

Meanwhile, EC announced Barcelona Process in 1995 in which the Union iterated the need to
initiate the capacity-building of Palestinian Authority (PA) and to help it economically and
financially. Since then, Europe has been a major financial donor to the PA.

Year 1999 was also very important because of Berlin Declaration. Through this Declaration,
EU made commitment for the creation of Palestine and its recognition at an appropriate time.
Through these declarations, EU seemed to be gradually heading toward the recognition of
rights of Palestinians. It was setting precedents for other non-Muslim and Western countries
to support the cause of Palestine.

In 2002, the EU, the UN, the US and Russia established the Quartet Process which aimed at
resolving the issue on the basis of UN Security Council resolutions. Quartet presented “Road
Map for Peace” and EU fully supported the initiative. Then, in 2009, Obama became the
President of the United States and demonstrated a personal interest in reviving the peace
process. Again, EU supported US efforts and provided diplomatic help to all parties.
Unfortunately, these efforts failed and the peace process collapsed.

In an election campaign for his next term, Israeli Premier, Benjamin Netanyahu, ignited
nationalist sentiments and based his campaign on the slogan ‘Palestine will not be established
under his rule’. This was the most unfortunate moment for all because his campaign
threatened the global efforts to resolve the conflict and implement the two-state solution.

This triggered a policy shift in European Union. This time, EU passed resolution to recognize
the Palestine and help it to gain membership of the United Nations General Assembly.
Through the help of European countries, Palestine got an observer status in the UNGA which
was hailed as a landmark victory for the Palestinians. European Union also threatened to
impose sanctions on products manufactured in occupied territories. Besides, France also
lobbied to introduce resolution in the UNSC and persuaded the US not to veto it. Another big
moment for the Palestinians came when Sweden recognized the Palestine as a separate state,
triggering discussions in the national parliaments of European countries. Various national
parliaments have asked their respective governments to follow the suit. Current policy of EU
has mounted the pressure on Israel.

Possible policy options

There is no doubt in sincere and dedicated commitment of EU for the cause of Palestine. But,
its persistent efforts since 1980s have not materialised the ultimate dream. Therefore, it is the
need of the hour that the EU readjusts its policy and becomes more proactive in its dealing
with Israel. At the very first place, the EU needs to bring all member states on a single
platform. There is a dire need of a consensus, coherent EU policy toward the issue. For that
matter, EU Foreign Policy Chief Federica Mogherini needs to initiate exhausting diplomatic
endeavours to all member countries. Admittedly, it is difficult to achieve, but not an
impossible task. There was a time when Europe was divided into two camps led by France
and Britain on Palestine issue. But now, Britain and France are in the same camp. Both
countries have unified voice for the rights of the Palestinians. United voice of Europe will
isolate America in its unconditional support for Israel. Certainly, America cannot afford to
ignore Europe and act unilaterally in this age of transforming global order. This will surely
compel America to reduce its support for Israel and later seek a negotiated settlement.

The second thing which the EU needs to do is to unite the Palestinian factions. EU supported
and sponsored the elections in Palestine in 2006. Hamas emerged victorious. But violence
ensued because of the infighting between Hamas and Fatah. These infightings ended with the
Hamas taking control of Gaza strip and Fatah of West Bank. This division is harming the
cause of Palestine in general, and EU efforts in particular. As EU is the leading financer of
Palestine, it has the leverage on it. EU should use this leverage to bring both parties on the
negotiating table and unite them. Once they are united, EU efforts will get augmented.
Besides, this unity will uphold the relevance of two-state solution.

Finally, the most important step would be to pressurise Israel. Since three decades, EU has
been trying to persuade Israel through diplomatic means to have a dialogue with PA and seek
negotiated settlement. But these diplomatic overtures failed to resolve the issue. Now EU
should pursue other options to mount pressure upon Israel. This can be done through
sanctions as well. EU should continue with the plan to impose sanctions on Israel. According
to Article 2 of the EU-Israel Association Agreement, the relationship between both parties
should be based on respect for human rights, democratic principles and International law.
Israel is bent on blatant violation of these provisions. This is the basis on which EU should
impose sanctions and nudge Israel to seek negotiated settlement and implement two-state
solution.

Conclusion

Palestine-Israel conflict is very complex issue that cannot be resolved so easily. There have
been global efforts to bring peace between both parties. Unfortunately, peace is as elusive as
ever. Many blame  unconditional US support to Israel as a reason for the failure of global
efforts. Critics claim that multi-faceted support by the US has made Israel stubborn and
immune to international pressure. In this equation, EU has been adopting balanced approach
since 1980s. Therefore, it enjoys extremely vital position. It has a soft corner in Arab word
and Israel as well. EU needs to utilize this leverage and play pivotal role in resolving the
conflict. It has been adopting soft measures to persuade Israel. But the time demands to adopt
some coercive tactics like diplomatic pressure and sanctions. Along with this, EU should
mobilise its member states and other Western countries to rally behind its efforts. EU led
coordinated, cohesive and unified policy supplied by carrots and sticks is the only effective
and efficient way to force Israel and Palestine to seek a negotiated settlement.