A ban on trade with Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank received the strongest backing among European Union foreign ministers on Monday, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said, although the bloc remained divided over possible curbs on such commerce.
European governments have increased pressure for EU action in recent months, citing violence by Israeli settlers against Palestinians and frustration with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government, which has expanded settlements.
At a meeting in Brussels, the ministers debated three options set out in a confidential paper by the European Commission - an import licensing system, prohibitive tariffs or a ban, according to people familiar with the document.
Kallas said a ban received the most support among the representatives of the EU's 27 countries but diplomats said there was no clear majority for any single option.
Kallas said ambassadors from member states had been tasked with further work on the issue.
Dutch Foreign Minister Tom Berendsen said EU members were split between those like his own that favour a ban, others who were opposed and a middle group of countries that are still considering their position.
"In the coming weeks, there needs to be clarity about where that group in the middle stands. Then we hope to be able to take another step at the end of the summer," he said.
EU governments and institutions even disagree on the legal basis required for any move to curb trade with the settlements.
The European Commission and some EU governments say it would require unanimity among member states. Other governments and the legal service of the Council of the EU, which represents member countries, say it would need a qualified majority - at least 15 EU states, representing 65% of the bloc's population.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar accused Kallas of using diplomatic "tricks" to try to push through a ban. "Israel's relations with Europe should be based on dialogue and fairness," Saar said on X.
Earlier in the day, Kallas declined to say what her preferred option was, adding it did not matter as she was seeking to find common ground among the EU's members.
U.N. bodies and most countries have found Israel's settlements in the West Bank to be illegal. Israel rejects this, viewing the territory as disputed and saying a Jewish presence has existed there for thousands of years.
In a July 2024 advisory opinion, the International Court of Justice said Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories and settlements in the West Bank are illegal and that states should take steps to prevent trade or investment relations that help maintain the situation.
Monday's debate exposed longstanding differences among EU members on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
"There is no room for dilly-dallying," Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares told reporters. "We stand with international law and believe what needs to be done is banning that trade."
But his German counterpart, Johann Wadephul, said the EU's focus should be on pressing the Israeli government to take action against violent settlers.
"That is a united position shared by the whole European Union," Wadephul said.
