Britain and Germany on Monday rejected talk of European Union trade sanctions against Israel in response to its military operation in to the West Bank.
Ahead of an EU foreign ministers meeting, German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer said sanctions would be "counterproductive."
European Union foreign ministers on Monday debated a German peace plan and considered possible sanctions against Israel for its attack in Palestinian areas. The German move was a surprise initiative from a country not normally seen as having any role in Mideast peacemaking.
According to AP, Fischer has drafted a two-year timeframe for, among other things, a durable cease-fire, the withdrawal of Israeli troops, the dismantlement of Jewish settlements, the creation of a Palestinian state and an internationally monitored buffer zone.
This would be followed by talks on touchy "final status" issues such as the future of Jerusalem and the exact borders of Israel and the Palestinian state. The German plan also provides for security guarantees under the auspices of the United Nations (news - web sites), the United States, the European Union and Russia.
The EU ministers were to discuss the Middle East with Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov over dinner Monday night.
Lack of support from Britain and Germany highlighted divisions among the Europeans over imposing trade sanctions to punish Israel for its aggression against Palestinian cities that began March 29. Last week the European Parliament, the EU's 626-member assembly, appealed for a suspension of trade relations with Israel.
Belgium and Austria favored convening a meeting with Israel — a possibility under an accord that grants Israel EU trade benefits — to discuss what is seen in some EU nations as serious human rights violations by Israeli troops.
Belgian Foreign Minister Louis Michel said he favored taking Israel to task over the fighting in Palestinian areas. "Israel plays a dangerous game ... I have always been a friend of Israel, but the Israelis do not consider the isolation they risk putting themselves into. (Their) military option is a mistake." (Albawaba.com)
© 2002 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
