Since October 7th 2023 the European Union has not put any broad comprehensive sanctions on Israel, only targeted sanctions on specific extremist Israeli settlers and entities. The Union was quick to take a standpoint against Russia after they invaded Ukraine, but with over two years of a civilian casualties in Gaza, the EU has not come to an agreement on actions against Israel, even after multiple human rights organizations have agreed that there´s been a genocide.
If you ask experts we talked to, they agree with each other that the lack of action against Israel is damaging the EU’s reputation. John O’Brennan, professor and expert on European integration at Maynooth University in Ireland even finds it ‘utterly appalling’. “As someone who strongly believes in European integration, I think the position taken by most member states and the European Commission has done huge damage to the EU’s reputation”, he claims.
“Just a week after the October 7th attacks, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen went to Israel and completely aligned herself with the Israeli government. At a time when Israel had already killed more people than Hamas had on October 7th”, continues O’Brennan. “She even had the Israeli flag projected onto the Commission’s building in Brussels. It was incredibly short-sighted and caused enormous reputational harm”, he says.
The credibility of the EU was completely undermined by these double standards
MEP Marc Botenga
Full Professor of International Law and International Organization Jan Wouters agrees that the EU´s reputation gets harmed by the lack of action. “The flaring up of the Gaza conflict has really shown the limits of European foreign policy. I’m pretty convinced that many other countries in the world now see us as totally hypocritical and guilty of using double standards”, Wouters claims.
MEP (Member of European Parliament) Marc Botenga, from The Left Group, agrees with Prof. Wouters and fears that the EU’s credibility will be undermined by these double standards:
It is not only because of the veto right that the EU hasn’t taken the action that a lot of people wished they would. Prof. Wouters also sees other reasons: “There are different underlying economic interests. Israel is a very important economic partner. It’s very important also in the technological field, and in the military field. So even if we didn’t have the vetoes of individual countries, it would still be difficult.”
Israel in international sports and entertainment
Also sports sanctions (or the lack of it) form a discussion point. But to what extent can political sanctions from the European Union influence independent sports federations like UEFA or FIFA? “Well, they can influence, but they don’t always do so”, says Dr. J. Simon Rofe, expert in sports diplomacy. “Sanctions are sometimes a quite blunt instrument to address the reality of the world in which we live. So I don’t think we should be under any illusions that sanctions are going to solve the world.”
Dominik, Antwerp for Palestine, calls out Israels colonial policy:
Organiser and protester talk about sports sanctions and double standards
“When Russia invaded Ukraine, FIFA and UEFA acted decisively within days. Consistency is the key to credibility, and the same principles must apply today,” MEP Daniel Attard said in the Malta Independent.
Dr. Rofe continues: “I point you to Carole Gomez’s chapter in our book Sport and Diplomacy: Games Within Games from 2018. Which really looks at a sort of conceptual piece of boycotts and sanctions in the world of sport and asks the extent to which that is a useful dialogue for us to be able to model at this point.”
“I think these are the kinds of outcomes that you need to be aware of when we’re talking about sanctions, even in the most conceptual fashion. I think the reality is that we need to look at the threat of sanctions, rather than the reality of them”, concludes Rofe.
“The return of the flag and anthem is a major victory for Putin,” insisted an anonymous Russian sports journalist in the article. “In the USSR, as in modern Russia, sport is a political tool. Athletes glorify the dictator and bolster his international prestige.”
Over the last few years Russia has decided to battle the legislative side of their sports restrictions. And it’s working. The first dominoes are falling, the first Russian (and Belarusian) athletes are again allowed to compete in international competitions. And now their skiers are back, just in time for the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan.
In the article Lukas Aubin, author of Géopolitique de la Russie, explains his view on this evolution: “Until now, successes were limited. But now, there’s a shift: Donald Trump. The momentum is there, driven by the US president, who is breaking down barriers. Trump will likely want to make the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics the true return of Russian athletes. The Milan Winter Games are a step on that road.”
Cultural sanctions will not make a big difference
MEP Kathleen Van Brempt
Eurovision Song Contest
The subject is also very much alive at the Eurovision Song Contest. Israel is not excluded there either, which will lead to the non-participation of some countries in 2026. Already 5 countries decided not to participate in the next edition: the Netherlands, Spain, Slovenia, Ireland and Iceland.
Kathleen Van Brempt, MEP with the Socialists and Democrats Group, sees the possible exclusion of Israel as just a symbolic sanction and wants other sanctions:
MEP Kathleen Van Brempt on sanctions against Israel
In addition, some previous winners of the singing competition have returned their trophy, including Nemo. According to the winner in 2024, Israel’s participation in the song festival runs counter to the values of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), the organiser of Eurovision. “Eurovision says it stands for unity, inclusion and dignity for all. Those values made this contest meaningful to me”, says Nemo on his Instagram. “Israel’s continued participation, during what the United Nations Independent International Commission of Inquiry has concluded to be a genocide, show a clear conflict between those ideals and the decisions mady by the EBU (European Broadcasting Union).”
He continues: “The contest was repeatedly used to soften the image of a state accused of severe wrongdoing, all while the EBU insisted Eurovision is ‘non-political’.”
Post-war
Full Professor Jan Wouters also sees a historical reason for the cautious behaviour of the EU: “You know, for historical reasons we are divided about Israel. We have a great sense of responsibility about what happened in the Second World War, especially Germany.”
Former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Moldova Nicu Popescu goes back to the core of the EU: “I think people forgot that the EU was not created with economic objectives in mind and not just to create some technical legislation that everyone needs to adopt. Europe was created in a post-war context. It was created as a design for peace, as a design to reconcile France and Germany, but also as an institution to prevent new German attacks on Belgium, the Netherlands or Denmark. Europe always was the response to war and dictatorship.”
Authors | Julie Desair, Thibaut Schnaphauf, Kayleigh Van Dijck, Roman Van Tilborg, Espen Wekre
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