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yesterday

EU Proposes Sanctions on Israeli Ministers and Partial Suspension of Trade Preferences

Member-state divisions and a high voting threshold make adoption uncertain.

View of the European Parliament, on the eve of the address by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on the State of the European Union to the European Parliament, in Strasbourg, France, September 10, 2025. REUTERS/Yves Herman
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen delivers the State of the European Union address to the European Parliament, in Strasbourg, France, September 10, 2025. REUTERS/Yves Herman
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen delivers a major state of the union speech at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, eastern France, Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Pascal Bastien)
FILE - From left, European Council President Antonio Costa, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen arrive for an EU Summit at the European Council building in Brussels, Thursday, March 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Omar Havana, File)

Overview

  • In a State of the Union address, Ursula von der Leyen said the Commission will seek to sanction extremist Israeli ministers and partially suspend the trade chapter of the EU‑Israel association agreement.
  • She said the Commission will pause its bilateral support to Israel while continuing engagement with Israeli civil society and Yad Vashem.
  • The executive will set up a Palestine Donor Group next month that includes an instrument for Gaza reconstruction.
  • The EU, Israel’s biggest trading partner, can only withdraw trade preferences with a qualified‑majority vote—15 of 27 states representing 65% of the population—and diplomats say key capitals remain unconvinced.
  • EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said options to curb trade and research ties are prepared but blocked by disagreements among governments, noting that 2,904 aid trucks entered Gaza between July 10 and Sept. 1 after a July deal.