Analysis
EU sanctions some settlers and that’s it – ‘the bare minimum’
The EU-27 sanctioned certain settlers and extremist organizations accused of violence against Palestinians, but they have avoided taking more incisive steps. The posture toward Russia is quite different: the EU has already approved 20 sanctions packages.
In the wake of the release of activists Ávila and Abu Keshek, as the Freedom Flotilla is trying to regroup in Turkey, sanctions against Israeli settlers in the West Bank were on the table at the EU Foreign Affairs Council meeting in Brussels. This also included, at least in the intentions of some European governments, trade measures against the illegal settlements in the West Bank, while the scenario of a possible revision of the EU-Israel partnership agreement was doomed to failure right from the start.
The EU-27 have reached an agreement on individual sanctions against certain settlers and extremist organizations accused of violence against Palestinians, but they have avoided taking more incisive steps, which have long been awaited and called for by a large segment of European civil society.
The measures adopted do not include any provisions against the Netanyahu government – starting with the Israeli prime minister himself, who is the subject of an arrest warrant request from the International Criminal Court for war crimes – and against the extremist ministers Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben-Gvir. Furthermore, there is not even any embargo on products originating from the settlements, let alone a suspension of the EU-Israel Association Agreement.
EU Foreign Policy Chief Kaja Kallas spoke of a “shift from deadlock to delivery,” arguing that the measures showed that “extremism and violence carry consequences.” However, the approved package, which also includes sanctions against Hamas, remains severely limited compared to the demands put forward by the most combative governments, primarily Spain and Ireland.
What made even this minimal result possible was, most of all, the change of government in Hungary. Budapest had blocked any measures against Israeli settlers for months, as their approval requires unanimity. This time no veto came, nor did any other political blockades that many in Brussels had feared: neither from the orbit of former Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš, a candidate to be the new Orbán, nor from Bulgaria under the newly elected Rumen Radev. The unanimous consent required for the approval of individual sanctions therefore passed without any particular issue.
However, there was open warfare over the trade measures against illegal settlements in the West Bank. France and Sweden have called for a European ban on products and services coming from the settlements, a measure that, unlike individual sanctions, requires only a qualified majority (55% of countries representing 65% of the population) to be approved. Madrid openly pushed to bring the proposal to a vote, and Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares accused the Union of hiding behind vague formulas regarding the supposed lack of majority support. “The credibility of the European Union is at stake,” he declared upon arriving at the Council. Albares then asked to discuss at least a partial suspension of the Association Agreement with Israel. However, the proposal ran first and foremost into a “no” from Berlin, which is firmly opposed to any halt in economic relations with Tel Aviv.
Italy's role was decisive on the trade issue, as it could have made the numerical difference to set up a majority favorable to initiatives like the Spanish or the Franco-Swedish ones. However, Minister Antonio Tajani barricaded himself behind the lack of a formal legislative proposal from the EU Commission, while also maintaining an ambiguous stance (“we will evaluate it when it arrives”). “If Tajani were not pushing against them, the trade measures would have been adopted a long time ago,” commented Claudio Francavilla, the associate director of Human Rights Watch in Brussels.
The posture of the European foreign ministers toward Russia is quite different: the EU has already approved 20 sanctions packages against the latter so far, while the 21st is being planned. The Foreign Affairs Council, so timid toward Tel Aviv, has adopted punitive measures against 16 Russian individuals and seven organizations accused of being involved in the deportation, forced transfer and indoctrination of Ukrainian minors. But while for those sanctions Brussels points directly at the link between the individuals and the Kremlin, it is acting as if there was no connection at all between the settlers and the Israeli government. This is a double standard that many officials and diplomats in Brussels are aware of, but which remains a contradiction at the institutional level.
There was sharp criticism from The Left group. According to Left MEP Lynn Boylan, chair of the European Parliament’s Delegation for Relations with Palestine, the approved sanctions represent “the bare minimum” and arrive only thanks to public pressure and street mobilizations. Left MEPs continue to demand a stop to products from the settlements, the immediate suspension of the partnership agreement, as well as a complete embargo on the arms trade between European countries and Israel.
Originally published at https://ilmanifesto.it/sanzioni-ai-coloni-e-basta-ue-israele-tutto-come-prima on 2026-05-12