The President of the European Council, Charles Michel, has called this Saturday night an emergency meeting of the heads of State and Government of the 27 to address the situation in Gaza and the risks to continental security. It will be next Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. and by videoconference, just a week before the leaders meet again in Brussels for a regular Summit. “Nothing justifies the brutal terrorist attacks by Hamas against Israel. We are in full solidarity with the people of Israel. Israel has the right to defend itself in full respect of international law. The unfolding tragedy has many consequences for Europe. That is why I have called a Council Extraordinary European Parliament by videoconference to establish a common position and a clear and unified line of action,” he explained in a message in a statement.
The text may seem generic, standard, but it is not. In those few sentences there are three crucial elements, loaded with meaning, full of reproaches and that summarize the chaos of the last seven days in Brussels, the enormous anger of many governments with the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, and the quarrels between those responsible for the three main community institutions.
In his message, Michel first condemns the savage massacre perpetrated by Hamas, an organization considered terrorist by the EU, and emphasizes that Israel has the right to defend itself. There are no doubts, hesitation or nuances, something on which absolutely everyone in the EU agrees. From there, the problems.
The second message is exactly the one that follows, when he emphasizes that this defense must fully respect international law. It might seem obvious, but it has been the great topic of discussion in Brussels, because the president of the Commission, in an unprecedented case, has acted for days almost completely alone, without coordinating with the capitals, with Michel himself and with its high representative for Foreign Policy, the Spanish Josep Borrell. But above all, she has tried to rewrite, on the fly and on her own, the Union’s position.
Von der Leyen has written and spoken time and again about the bloodthirsty attack and the right and “duty” of Israel’s response to “protect its citizens”, giving it what everyone has interpreted, in its team and in the rest of the buildings from the Belgian capital, carte blanche. It wasn’t a mistake, a slip. He has maintained the position, barely mentioning the Palestinians, the situation in Gaza and, above all, international law until this very Saturday. And not from his office, but he traveled to Israel on Friday, together with the president of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, to meet with President Isaac Herzog, who the day before had flatly stated that all the inhabitants of Gaza had a responsibility in the current situation, dismissing calls from the international community not to collectively punish two million people for the actions of Hamas.
Von der Leyen has also gone against the message of the foreign ministers of the 27, who this week, also by videoconference, addressed the situation. Borrell, on their behalf, stressed that international law had to be respected, asked that water, electricity or internet not be cut off, and that humanitarian corridors be opened. The German has said none of that throughout the week, not even when the US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, asked for “proportionality” from his great ally, or when the German Foreign Minister herself has insisted that those who ” separates us from terrorists” is “the protection of civilians. Even her own party, the European Popular Party, drew a very clear line in the face of her silence.
Only this Saturday, in a statement to announce that humanitarian aid to Gaza will be tripled to 75 million euros urgently, did he refer to the need for the Israeli military response to abide by the rules of law. It is revealing of his positioning that this money had already been agreed upon for days, and that the plan was to make the announcement when she was in the area, although only on the Israeli side, for obvious reasons. But she, given that she was showing her total solidarity and support for the Israeli leaders and visiting the areas of the kibbutz massacre, chose not to say anything and delay the announcement, which she reported on social media. and a statement.
Charles Michel alludes to all these actions in his message when he summons the leaders “to establish a common position and a clear and unified line of action.” That is, to call the president to order and make clear what the position of the Union is, not of a leader who a few months ago irritated the governments by signing on her own, without waiting for the green light from the ministers, a migration agreement with Tunisia. And it has been raised in Israel almost competing with the Maltese Metsola, president of the European Parliament, the first international leader who visited Kiev last year after the Russian invasion and who also aspires to occupy the position of president of the Commission if the circumstances arise. were propitious.
“The tragic scenes unfolding in the Gaza Strip as a result of the siege and the lack of basic needs, combined with the destruction caused by major bombings, are raising alarm bells in the international community,” says Michel in his statement in the harshest language yet from Europe. “The Union has always been and must be a strong supporter of peace and respect for international law, as in the case of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine. The Union must work to provide humanitarian assistance and prevent a regional escalation of conflict and any violation of humanitarian law,” adds the Belgian.
Michel has the Palestinians in mind, he takes into account the many calls he has received these days from all the capitals. But he also takes the opportunity to settle scores in his perpetual struggle with Von der Leyen. The president of the Commission, whom Joe Biden wants as the next secretary general of NATO, is without a doubt the most visible figure on the continent, probably the strongest president there has ever been, or at least in the last 20 years, and She has become an uncomfortable rival rather than a colleague or social partner for Michel, who now sees his opportunity. The most childish example of her perpetual friction is how this week the German’s communications team deliberately cut Michel from a photo in which he appeared with Von der Leyen and Metsola in an act of repudiation of the attack in front of the Eurochamber.
But having said all that, Michel also heeds the warning calls for pure strategic reasons from governments. “The conflict could have important consequences for the security of our societies. If we are not careful, we have the potential to exacerbate tensions between communities and fuel extremism. Finally, there is a significant risk of migration and displacement of large numbers of people towards neighboring countries that already have a significant number of refugees in their territory. If it is not handled carefully, there is a risk of waves of migration to Europe,” he highlights, pointing out what the Member States really fear right now.
