The idea of requesting a “humanitarian pause” that would allow aid to reach Gaza sparks “consensus” among the Twenty-Seven, announced this Monday the EU High Representative for Foreign Policy, Josep Borrell, at the end of the ministerial meeting held in Luxembourg. in which the traditional dividing lines on the conflict were once again revealed.
The initiative to request a pause in the attacks by both parties during which the international community can deliver basic supplies to the strip is emerging as the only possible diplomatic formula that can be agreed upon at the European level, given the lack of unanimity regarding the “ceasefire” request launched by the Secretary General of the United Nations, António Guterres. The decision will be debated at the highest level by the European heads of state and government during the summit that will bring them together in Brussels on Thursday and Friday.
“There is a basic consensus to understand that a pause for humanitarian reasons would be very necessary so that humanitarian aid could enter without running the risks that a continued war action entails,” defended Borrell, who did not hide that a pause is, by definition, a mere “interruption” and implies the subsequent resumption of the suspended action. “It is a less ambitious objective than a ceasefire,” but one that “can be agreed upon more quickly.”
“There is a vital need to deliver water, food and medical assistance to Gaza, the degree of human suffering is immense,” lamented the Irish Foreign Minister, Micheal Martin, who called for a distinction between “the civilians of Gaza and Hamas.” . While Dublin supports the call for a ceasefire, Berlin resists any decision that curtails the right of the Jewish State to defend itself. “We have all seen that terrorism does not stop, the massive missile attacks on Israel…” warned the German Foreign Minister, Annalena Baerbock. “We cannot end the humanitarian catastrophe while terrorism from Gaza continues,” she said.
In the face of persistent division, the EU is determined to focus, in the short term, on easing the situation in the Gaza Strip and facilitating aid for basic supplies, including the fuel needed to run the desalination plants that provide drinking water to the territory, but without losing sight of the need to defend respect for international law in Israel's response. The situation is “serious,” admitted Borrell, who warned of the risk of a regional escalation and opted to maintain pressure and promote a peace formula based on the two-state solution.
