from ‘my voice, my choice’: european commission finally proposes the suspension of the eu-israel trade agreement
from
My Voice, My Choice
Dear community,
We have encouraging news from the European Union. Today the president of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen made a major announcement in her speech to the European parliament:
“We will propose sanctions on the extremist ministers and on violent settlers and we will also propose a partial suspension of the Association Agreement on trade-related matters.”
We have been calling for the suspension of the EU-Israel trade agreement for months with “Suspend the EU–Israel trade agreement. Stop the genocide.” that has already collected more than 375,000 signatures. It is unacceptable that the EU rewards Israel with preferential trade access that amounts to 28.8% of Israeli exports worth 15.9 billion euro a year, while a genocide is happening in Gaza.
Today’s announcement means the EU has taken 2 out of the 3 steps necessary to suspend the trade agreement. In July the official review recognized that Israel is violating human rights, today the commission has proposed the suspension of the agreement and now it is up to the European council where the heads of all EU member countries will vote on the proposal.
The suspension will take effect only if a qualified majority of 15 member states representing at least 65% of the EU population will vote in for it. This means that we must pressure member states, especially Italy and Germany, that have been most hesitant to act, to do the right thing. The suspension of the trade agreement is crutial if we want to end the genocide in Gaza.
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In her speech von der Leyen pointed out that what is happening in Gaza has shaken the conscience of the world: that people are being killed while begging for food; that mothers are holding lifeless babies; that famine, created by human hands, can never be used as a weapon against civilians. She admitted that the European Union cannot afford to be paralysed when it comes to Palestine. Now it is up to the leaders of EU member states to also recognize these brutal facts.
We are watching closely, and we will keep you informed.
My Voice, My Choice team