Amman, July 13 (Petra) — European Union foreign policy chief Kaja
Kallas said on Monday that a ban on trade with Israeli illegal
settlements in the occupied West Bank was “the option that received
the broadest support” among EU member states during a meeting of the
bloc’s foreign ministers.

Speaking at a press conference in Brussels, Kallas said all 27 EU
member states agree that the settlements are illegal and noted that
the European Union already applies a policy of distinguishing
products originating from those areas.

She said the European Commission had presented several options,
including a full or partial ban on imports from the settlements or
the imposition of tariffs on goods imported from them.

The discussions come amid growing calls within the European Union for
tougher measures against Israeli settlements after the bloc imposed
sanctions in May on four entities and three individuals it said were
responsible for serious and systematic human rights violations
against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank.

European diplomatic sources say the increase in settler violence,
coupled with the continued expansion of settlements under the
government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, has prompted
a growing number of member states to push for concrete economic
measures.

Some of the proposed European measures are based on the advisory
opinion issued by the International Court of Justice in July 2024,
which concluded that Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian
territories and the establishment of settlements in the occupied West
Bank are illegal.

//Petra// AF