PARIS, Feb. 17 (Xinhua) -- Israel's recent assault on the Gaza Strip has caused widespread concern in the international community, resulting in a large number of casualties. In particular, since the Israeli army attacked the southern Gaza city of Rafah on 12 July, Europe, which had relatively supported Israel in the Gaza conflict, has more clearly opposed Israel's military action and even criticized the United States, Israel's biggest backer. Some analysts have pointed out that due to differences between Europe and the United States in terms of their domestic affairs needs and strategic interests, differences between the two countries on the Palestinian-Israeli issue have gradually become apparent.
Europe has spoken out against it.
In order to escape Israel's military operations in the Gaza Strip, a large number of people fled to Rafah, at the southern tip of the Gaza Strip, which has almost become the last place of refuge for the people of Gaza. It is precisely for this reason that the Israeli army's military action against Rafah has aroused widespread concern in the international community, and the European Union and many European countries have also clearly expressed their opposition.
EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell said in a statement on the 16th that the EU demands that Israel refrain from military action in Rafah, because this will further worsen the already catastrophic humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip and hinder the delivery of much-needed basic services and humanitarian aid to the region.
Pictured here is EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell chairing the EU Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Brussels, Belgium, July 18, 2022**. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Zheng Huansong.
France's Macron issued a statement after meeting with visiting Jordanian King Abdullah II on the 16th, saying that Israel's attack on Rafah could cause an "unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe" or become a "turning point" in this round of conflict. Macron called on Israel to stop its operations in the Gaza Strip when he spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on the 14th, and said that the situation and humanitarian situation there were "intolerable".
Irish Prime Minister Varadkar and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez sent a joint letter to European Commission President von der Leyen on the 14th, saying that Israel's military action in Rafah poses a "serious and imminent threat" and asking the European Commission to "urgently review" whether Israel has complied with the human rights provisions in the relevant EU-Israel agreements.
German Foreign Minister Baerbock told Israel on the 14th that millions of people are trapped in Rafah, and if the Israeli army attacks Rafah like this, it will have serious humanitarian consequences. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said in a phone call with Netanyahu on the 5th that the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip is "very worrying". Germany, "one of Israel's staunchest allies in the EU," is "rethinking" its support for Israel's military operation in Gaza, according to the Belgian newspaper Politico Europe**.
There are obvious differences between the United States and Europe.
After the outbreak of the new round of Palestinian-Israeli conflict on October 7 last year, Europe's attitude towards the conflict was similar to that of the United States, that is, it condemned the attacks of the Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) against Israel, emphasized Israel's "right to self-defense", and supported Israel's military action against Hamas. However, as the humanitarian and humanitarian crisis caused by the Israeli military operation in Gaza grows, the international community's calls for a ceasefire and an end to the fighting are rising, and the attitudes of the United States and Europe are also changing, but there are differences between the two.
Biden has repeatedly said that Israel should not move forward with military operations in Rafah until a credible and enforceable plan is in place to ensure the safety and support of civilians in Rafah.
On 13 February, people fled their homes in the city of Rafah, Gaza Strip, fleeing Israeli military operations. Xinhua News Agency (photo by Yasser Cudi).
Clearly, the United States continues to support Israel's continued military operations in Gaza, including the attack on Rafah, albeit with "strings attached" to the protection of civilians. At the same time, the United States is not putting substantial pressure on Israel and is still providing military assistance to it.
In this regard, Borrell asked at a press conference on the 12th whether Israel wants to evacuate Palestinian civilians in Rafah to the moon or not? He pointed out that if the United States believes that Israel's military action has caused too many civilian deaths, it should reduce its military aid to Israel, rather than just verbally criticizing Israel's military action as "excessive."
An article in the British newspaper The Guardian pointed out that within the European Union, Ireland, Belgium, Spain, Slovenia, Portugal, Malta, Luxembourg and other countries are critical of Israel on the Gaza conflict. Brigitte Elleman, a scholar at Ghent University in Belgium, was quoted as saying that within the EU, "the most important countries tend to be pro-Israel", and EU countries with different views constitute an "important counterbalance".
The interests behind it are different.
Analysts have pointed out that Europe and the United States have similar political needs from the internal point of view. Both the United States and Europe are facing important elections this year, with the United States having ** elections and Europe having European Parliament elections. Both the United States and Europe have a certain number of Jewish and Muslim groups, and the pro-Israel stance of the United States and Europe has caused dissatisfaction among Muslim groups within their respective countries, so it is necessary to alleviate this dissatisfaction with the first position on the Palestinian-Israeli issue.
Demonstrators rally in solidarity with Palestine near the EU headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, October 22, 2023. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Zhao Dingzhe.
However, the internal reason for the United States to continue to support Israel is to gain the support of Jewish interest groups with strong financial resources and influence, and European countries support Israel largely out of a sense of guilt for the Jews who have historically been, so when the civilian and humanitarian crisis caused by Israel's military action is getting bigger and bigger, the United States chooses to continue to support Israel and only verbally "remind", and Europe is more clearly opposed to Israeli military action.
From the perspective of foreign policy, the strategic interests of the United States and Europe in the Middle East are different, and the impact of the spillover effect of the Middle East crisis is also different. Israel is an important strategic fulcrum of the United States in the Middle East, and the United States has intervened in Middle East affairs through Israel to safeguard its own strategic interests in the Middle East, so it has continued to provide Israel with a large amount of assistance for a long time. In contrast, Europe's strategic need for Israel is much smaller.
Israel's insistence on eliminating Hamas through military action has made it difficult to end the current round of conflict, and it has shown a prolonged trend. This makes it even more difficult for Europe, which has suffered major spillover shocks from the Ukraine crisis. Borrell said in an article published in the French magazine "Continent" at the beginning of the year that Europe between the two wars "is in danger" and that Europe should not "hand" the Palestinian-Israeli issue too much to the United States, but should participate more in mediation, because the Palestinian-Israeli conflict "affects us very directly." (Participating reporters: Li Jizhi, Hu Jiaqi, Deng Xianlai).