The President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen stated she would push to sanction "extremist" Israeli ministers and curb trade ties over Gaza, as she warned famine should not be used as a "weapon of war". Addressing the European Parliament on 10 September in the annual State of the Union, von der Leyen lamented that divisions among member states were holding back a European response but insisted the European Commission "will do all that it can on its own". "What is happening in Gaza has shaken the conscience of the world. People killed while begging for food. Mothers holding lifeless babies. These images are simply catastrophic," von der Leyen said. The German politician said the Commission would put its bilateral support to Israel on hold, stopping all payments, but without affecting work with civil society groups and Israel's Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial.
The European Union's executive will also propose sanctions on "extremist ministers", whose actions and words "incite violence", and "violent settlers". It will also push for a partial suspension of an association agreement with Israel on trade-related matters. However, such measures will need approval by the bloc's 27 member states, which have been deeply divided on how to respond to Israel actions in Gaza.
"I am aware it will be difficult to find majorities," von der Leyen conceded. "And I know that any action will be too much for some. Too little for others. But we must all take our own responsibilities". Hamas's October 7, 2023 attack on Israel sparked the nearly two-year war in Gaza and resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli figures.
Israel's retaliatory offensive has killed at least 64,605 Palestinians, most of them civilians, according to figures from the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza that the United Nations considers reliable.
The United Nations declared famine last month in parts of Gaza, warning that 500,000 people face "catastrophic" conditions. In her address von der Leyen also urged Europe to assert its independence in a "hostile" world, as she condemned Russia's suspected drone incursion in Poland. "Battlelines for a new world order based on power are being drawn right now," von der Leyen told the European Parliament.
"So, yes, Europe must fight for its place in a world in which many major powers are either ambivalent or openly hostile to Europe," she said. "This must be Europe's independence moment."
The rallying call from the powerful head of the 27-nation bloc's executive comes as she faces criticism over a trade deal with US President Donald Trump. Meanwhile, the EU is grappling with the fourth year of the Ukraine war as it threatens to spill over the EU border.
In the face of sporadic heckling from some lawmakers, von der Leyen gave a trenchant defence of her deal with Trump arguing that it had helped avert the "chaos" of a trade war. But it was the actual war happening just beyond the bloc's eastern flank that focused attention after Poland and NATO scrambled their defences to counter an incursion by Russian drones.
Building up its defences is a central part of the EU's agenda and von der Leyen said "Europe will defend every inch of its territory". "Europe's eastern flank keeps all of Europe safe. From the Baltic Sea to the Black Sea. This is why we must invest in supporting it," she said.
As the Kremlin's invasion of Ukraine drags on despite a peace push by Trump, von der Leyen pledged to keep up support for Kyiv and pressure on Moscow. She said that the EU wanted to make sure that Russia would ultimately pay the cost for the damage it has inflicted in Ukraine, with its frozen assets going to fund a new "reparation loan". Brussels will also host an international summit on trying to return abducted Ukrainian children, she said.
