My opinion piece on #Israel being offered #EuropeanUnion membership on the precondition of full acceptance of the State of #Palestine.
Adrian Zahra
3mo
Interesting as a philosophical and theoretical approach but in practice and for geographical reasons won't work. The EU would be seen by the Arab world as the descendants of the Crusaders coming back to retake the Holy Land. Can't see the EU selling that to them! After Ukraine (on the European landmass), would the EU really want another potential crisis point simultaneously but on the Asian landmass? Then there are the practical issues of almost 80 years of occupation and hostility: land, water, transportation, fishing rights, oil & gas exploration, security, borders & crossing points, the West Bank settlements etc.. The EU couldn't sort out the Cyprus issue - which is actually much simpler than this. Its major success remains Northern Ireland, which was really brokered and guaranteed by the USA. Even there, the solution was open borders, a common market, demilitarization and oversight of the territories by independent guarantors- none of which are very likely to be accepted by Israel.
You reminded me of a conversation I had with the curator of the fortress at Masada a few years back when he spoke of the terrible events of 73 C.E. as if they had happened the day before. "Look" he said as he pointed to the encampment walls of the Xth Legion far below us on the desert plains. "We just can't forget what they did to us". The way forward I think, is for the European Commission to engage more fully with the Abraham Accords process. (It is not currently an official signatory). A certain amount of realism is needed, in much the same way as it is needed in Ukraine. Lest we forget, the Zionism of pioneers like William Ormsby-Gore was as much an Arab movement as it was Jewish. And of course it is the Saudis and Turkey who have real leverage in the Muslim world.
I can see where Dr Muscat's optimism is coming from. Public opinion polls are indeed starting to shift towards a two state solution. A 2024 poll by the Viterbi Center for Public Opinion and Policy Research at the Israel Democracy Institute found that 37% of respondents supported the establishment of an independent and demilitarised Palestinian state. This is significantly more than a Gallup poll from 2023 that found only 25% of Israelis supporting a two-state solution. On the other hand, in 2012, 61% of Israelis supported a two state solution. As things stand, both Israel (pre-1967 borders) and the Palestinian territories enjoy an associate agreement with the European Union but US recognition of Israeli sovereignty over the Golan has changed the dynamic and solution architects need to think beyond 1967 constraints. A new European initiative to recognise the Palestinian state led by Spain and Ireland is a step in the right direction but there does not seem to be unanimity on the big ticket issues.
A welcome, important and totally justified initiative to end the slaughter in Gaza, free the hostage, break the current deadlock between Israel and Palestine, and end a regional conflict which goes back decades, if not centuries. Joseph Muscat! I went even further when I was a member of the European Parliament, arguing that in order to end the strife within north Africa and the Middle East, much of it caused by colonial interference, such as the 1916 British-French Sykes-Picot agreement, we offer all the countries in both regions membership, but only if they comply with the Copenhagen criteria. In other words an applicant state has the institutions to preserve democratic governance and human rights, has a functioning market economy, and accepts the obligations and intent of the European Union. I still believe that's the best way to promote peace, prosperity and our values, including human and minority rights. It worked for central and eastern Europe, and Malta and Cyprus, in the big accession wave almost 2O years ago. Let's be bold once again, and seek to build bridges not barriers between us and north Africa and the Middle East, and promote a EMEA Union.
Alex Grech
3mo
Not a bad idea.If you can't beat them join them.
JOHN FELICE
3mo
It is a great idea.
Christian Happel
3mo
Brilliant article! I wholeheartedly agree with your opinion.
Nadir Shah
3mo
💐💐💐
Diplomat
3moYes Hamas committed a heinous crime. But Israel,as a State, has lost all legality. Have a good look at the Balfour Declaration and you will realise what I am saying. Are we really kidding? Rewarding Israel for the sufferings, destruction and death that they have inflicted on the Palestinians. First and foremost Israel should be made to foot the bill for totally disregarding all UN resolutions over a span of 75 years and bringing international rule of law into disrepute. Israel, as other countries, should also be held to account and foot the bill for all reconstruction reparations needed in the West Bank and Gaza. No more no less. Last thing, are we forgetting that Israel has repeatedly denied the existence of a Palestinian State?