Kallas said she will ask the European Commission to propose restrictive measures on trade – again
The European Commission should present legal options for banning trade with illegal Israeli settlements, Kaja Kallas, the EU’s high representative for foreign affairs, said on Monday.
The chief EU diplomat – who is herself a commisioner – said many member states asked for the measures at a meeting of foreign ministers in Luxembourg.
Her remarks will put further pressure on her boss Ursula von der Leyen, and Maroš Šefčovič, the trade commissioner, to come forward with the measures, amid a stand-off inside the Berlaymont over what legal basis to use, and whether such measures are worth pushing for, while other sanctions remain blocked.
“I will […] ask the Commission to prepare ahead of the next Foreign Affairs Council a list of options for possible trade measures, including measures aimed at preventing imports of goods originating from illegal settlements,” she said. The Council next meets on 13 July in Brussels.
