The EU-Israel Association Agreement at risk of suspension

Translated by Valeria D’Alessandro

Following the recent bombing of Rafah, the European Union decided to reevaluate the Association Agreement with Israel. This decision reflects the proposal made three months ago by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and is influenced by the recent ruling of the International Court of Justice (ICJ). The Court ordinated an end to the Israelian offensive, but Tel Aviv responded by intensifying the bombings. 

Why did the response arrive so late? Only on Monday, the 27^th of May, was the needed unanimity reached to request the intervention of the EU-Israel Association Council, in charge of evaluating Tel Aviv’s compliance with its human rights obligation under the Agreement and how it intends to implement ICJ’s ruling.

What are the association agreement?

Association Agreement represents international instruments fundamental to “assisting EU in reaching its political objectives”. These agreements are supported by the legal bases established in Article 8 of the Treaty on the European Union, Title V in relation to EU’s external action, and Articles 206, 207, 216-219 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), regarding commercial policy and international agreements. 

These agreements can be negotiated with both non-EU countries and international organization, covering fields within the EU’s exclusive competences or sharing with Member States, such as trade, cooperation, development, costums control and technology.

In particular, the Association Agreements fall under a specific category of commercial agreement that EU uses to manage relationships with third countries, expand its economic influence, establish new common rules and promote fundamental values such as democracy and respect of human rights. These agreements thus integrate political objectives as well.

EU-ISRAEL Association Agreement

Regarding Israel, EU stipulated an association agreement (AA) in 1995, which came into effect in 2000. This agreement is a cornerstone of the bilateral relationship between the two parties, including provisions that cover trade to international cooperation, and political dialogue, aiming for “a progressive convergence of position on international questions and the pursuit of joint initiatives”.

The main areas defined in the articles 44-57 of the Agreement are:

• · Regional and Touristic Cooperation
• Industrial Cooperation: To facilitate the approximation of companies, stimulate innovation, technological collaboration, and free movement
• Agricultural Cooperation: To ensure sustainable agriculture and harmonizing phytosanitary standards
• Financial Cooperation: To adopt common norms for rules and supervision systems
• Border Cooperation: To simplify and digitalize procedures
• Environmental and Energy Cooperation: To prevent environmental deterioration and to develop renewable energy resources
• Cooperation on Migration: To limit illegal migration flows
• Cooperation against Drug Use and Money Laundering: To establish common norms to prevent illegal trafficking

One of the fundamental elements of the EU-Israel Agreement is the respect of human rights. Article 2 of the agreement clearly establishes that the relationships between the parties should be based on the respect for democratic rights and principles. This implies that any violation of these rights could even lead to the suspension of the agreement. Although the agreement does not provide specific mechanisms to monitor the respect for human rights, the EU uses a series of tools to evaluate the situation in Israel, including relationship with international organizations.

Criticism regarding Israel’s respect of human rights has always existed, particularly in relations to living conditions of Palestinians and the excessive use of force by Israeli security forces. However, recent developments on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict have brought the situation to a tipping point. In light of these events, the intervention of the Association Council was requested. This council is composed by members of the Council of the European Union and the Commission of the European Communities on one side, and members of Israel’s government on the other (Art. 68, paragraph 1). During these meetings, each party can submit any disputes related to the application of the agreement (Art. 75) and decisions should be adopted by mutual agreement.

What lies ahead in the coming days?

According to the Association Agreement, both parties will provide the Association Council with all necessary information for a thorough evaluation of the current situation. The goal is to find an acceptable solution for both sides and to preserve the functioning of the agreement.

At the same time, it is imperative that the European Union remains committed to safeguard human rights, even considering the suspension of the agreement with Israel and leveraging its economical influence as Tel Aviv’s main commercial partner. Currently, 31,9% of Israeli imports come from the EU and 25,6% of Israeli exports go to the EU.

Could this decision be a decisive move to end to the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza? The answer lies in the European Union’s hands and into its ability to act with firmness and coherence, according to its fundamental values.

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