EU countries fail to reach consensus on suspending dialogue with Israel

Following the EU Foreign Affairs Council meeting held in Brussels, Belgium, the European Union's High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, held a press conference.

Borrell stated that the foreign ministers of EU member states could not reach a consensus on suspending dialogue with Israel, saying, "The majority of member states expressed the view that it would be better to maintain diplomatic and political relations with Israel."

"THIS WAR IS BEING WAGED AGAINST CHILDREN"

Borrell, known for his humanitarian approach to the tragedy in Gaza and whose 5-year term will end on December 1, described the situation in Gaza as "apocalyptic" during the press conference held after the meeting.

Emphasizing that 70 percent of those who have died in Gaza are women and children, Borrell said, "Two million people in Gaza are trapped from one end of the strip to the other. The most common age for casualties in Gaza is five. This war is being waged against children."

Explaining that he had proposed suspending Israel's political and diplomatic relations with the EU for this reason, Borrell said, "The majority of member states expressed the view that it would be better to maintain diplomatic and political relations with Israel. Therefore, as expected, a decision in this direction was not taken into consideration. But at least I had the opportunity to put on the table all the information prepared by United Nations agencies and all international organizations working in Gaza, the West Bank, and Lebanon."

"WE KNOW THAT LARGE-SCALE CIVILIAN LOSSES HAVE OCCURRED"

Speaking to reporters after the EU Foreign Affairs Council meeting, Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski also confirmed that the proposal was not accepted. Sikorski said, "We know that tragic events and large-scale civilian losses have occurred in Gaza. However, we do not forget who started the current cycle of violence. I can tell you that there was no consensus on the idea of suspending talks with Israel."

Before the meeting, which brought together the foreign ministers of the 27 EU member states, Borrell had announced that he would propose suspending political dialogue between the EU and Israel to increase pressure on Israel due to human rights violations in Gaza.

Speaking to reporters in Brussels, Borrell had stated that he would request the foreign ministers to ensure that the EU acts in accordance with the International Court of Justice's ruling in July, which declared Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories illegal.